The survivors of the horrid terror attack that rocked Mandera County on Wednesday, February 19, and took the lives of three people have opened up on the experience that befell them in their journey.
Speaking to the Daily Nation from their hospital beds on Thursday, February 20, one of the patients narrated that the journey started well as he was on his way to Nairobi to be with his family.
Along the way, however, they found police officers who had mounted a roadblock, a spot where the officers escorting the bus stopped with the promise to catch up later after promises that the road ahead was safe.
The survivor narrated that the journey continued in relative peace until they got to a place identified as Salman where all hell broke loose.
"I was seated right behind the driver when the Al Shabaab ambushed us, lined beside the bus and tried to stop it. The driver sped away even as the insurgents shot the tires. He refused to stop," the survivor recounted.
He narrated that they bus sped on for almost one kilometer with burst tires while some of the passengers, including the narrator, had been shot in the leg.
"When the driver got to a point where he couldn't go anymore, he parked the bus at the edge of the road and I jumped out of the window and fell down on the ground. Again I was shot in the same leg.
"I dragged myself under the vehicle even as the driver and other passengers took off into the bushes. One man identified as James was shot in the head and killed before he got to the bushes. Another was shot in the stomach and died not too long after," he recounted.
The survivor further told the reporter that when the terrorists got to him, they spoke to him in the native language and when he answered in the little he knew, they let him go.
His sentiments were echoed by Ali, another survivor who blamed the lack of police escort for the attack.
The horiffic attack by the insurgents prompted the government to issue an order on Thursday, February 20, that all buses plying North-Eastern routes should have police escort before embarking on journeys.
Quoting Regional Commissioner Nick Ndalana, Daily Nation indicated that the state issued the ultimatum with a directive that those who failed to follow through may see their licenses revoked.
Video Courtesy of Daily Nation
