Police Close Down Mombasa-Nairobi Highway [PHOTOS]

Police closed down the Mombasa-Nairobi highway on Thursday morning.

The directive came after a train which was ferrying petroleum from the Mombasa port derailed at Kibarani and one of its wagons emptied on the rail.

The train reportedly lost its way at 4.30am and a wagon emptied its highly flammable contents on the railway line.

Police reached the decision to seal off the area which is opposite Uganda Property and ordered motorists, cyclists and pedestrians to use alternative routes to reach the CBD during the morning rush hour.

[caption caption="Firefighters cleaning the oil which had spilled"][/caption]

The accident caused major traffic woes into the Mombasa central business district which is Kenya’s second biggest city.

In March this year, KPA deployed a disaster management team to stop spillage of petrol into the ocean following a train's derailment.

Catherine Mturi-Wairi, Managing Director of the Kenya Ports Authority, described the incident at Kibarani in Mombasa County as unfortunate.

She noted that ambulances had been released and private cars, with people heading to the airport and the Standard Gauge Railway station in Miritini, allowed through the port.

Thousands of travelers between Mombasa island on the highway to Nairobi were stranded for hours until police opened an alternative route through the Mombasa port. 

[caption caption="A worker carrying pipes which could spill the oil"][/caption]

This route was restricted for use by those trying to get to Moi International Airport and the railway station in Miritini. 

Maritime authorities announced that about 3,000 litres of super petrol spilled out of the oil tankers adding that the road in the affected area would remain closed for some time. 

[caption caption="Pedestrians walking after Mombasa road got closed"][/caption]

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