A motorist in Eldoret averted a major disaster when he jumped into a moving fuel tanker that had lost control after its driver lost consciousness.
The fuel tanker was on the Eldoret flyover when it started ramming into other vehicles on the road.
However, a good samaritan who quick to his thoughts, noticed that the driver was fast asleep, oblivious of the havoc his trailer was causing.
The unidentified man jumped into the out-of-control trailer and managed to bring it to a stop.
Due to the impact of the several crashes, the tanker was leaking fuel but the savior was able to turn off the ignition, thus preventing the possibility of an explosion that would have left scores dead.
Among the vehicles damaged in the crash was a matatu whose passengers were lucky to have escaped with minor injuries.
The matatu driver, Limo Kimutai, recounted how the fuel tanker started to veer off the road hitting his vehicle from behind.
"It then pushed me further on causing me to crash two other vehicles which were in front of me, a pick-up and a saloon car. It was frightening but we thank God we only got minor cuts from the broken glasses,” Kimutai told reporters.
Emergency services responded to the accident scene and took the truck driver, who was found unconscious, to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) for treatment.
An eyewitness, who is a turn boy on the route stated that the driver may have lost consciousness due to the fact that he had just completed a long-distance trip and was not well-rested.
The driver was en route to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) at the time of the accident.
Fatigue among drivers is a leading cause of accidents, which has seen many long-distance and heavy commercial drivers suffer due to lack of adequate rest between and during safaris.
