Angry youth in Mwingi town, Kitui County have set ablaze a Probox car which was found carrying charcoal.
Efforts by the police to calm the melee were aborted as they got stoned and chased away by angry residents who accused them of promoting charcoal trade.
Business came to a standstill along the Mwingi-Garissa highway as the car which was loaded with 10 bags of charcoal headed for Nairobi went aflame.
The driver of the probox car escaped unhurt although the residents had threatened to stone him.
[caption caption="The vehicle caught transporting charcoal burnt by Kitui residents"]
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Speaking to journalists Mwingi central OCPD John Nyamu affirmed that investigations had been launched to ascertain the source of the fire.
This was the second charcoal vehicle to be torched in the County since Governor Charity Ngilu banned the trade in Kitui.
The incident comes a day after Ngilu appeared before the NCIC for questioning over the allegations of inciting the youth to burn charcoal lorries.
Ngilu, however, stated she will not be intimidated to lift the ban on charcoal and those aggrieved should carry out the business in their own counties.
[caption caption="Probox caught with charcoal in Kitui County"]
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She further remarked her duty as a leader was to take decisive measures to protect the environment in order to mitigate drought and erratic rainfall in the region.
Here is the video of the probox that was set on fire:
