Motorists plying the busy James Gichuru Road in Nairobi escaped by a whisker after a giant tree almost fell on their vehicles on Wednesday, November 23.
A dashcam video of one of the motorists captured the tree falling seconds before a car passed by the tree.
However, its long branches hit some of the vehicles in the other lane, causing minimal damage.
"That was a close shave on James Gichuru Road. Luckily, the traffic wasn't bumper to bumper as usual," a motorist, Tim Muinga, posted online.
One of the motorists who was recorded in the incident warned other drivers from using the road.
"I was the guy on the other side, blue Prado," one Patrick Ngure confirmed.
Ma3Route, traffic advocates, also advised Nairobi motorists against using the route as the tree had created had disrupted movement.
James Gichuru Road links Nairobi Expressway from Westlands to Gitanga Road.
Expansion of the road, which kicked off in August 2017, was scheduled for completion in January 2023 at the cost of Ksh18.7 billion.
“The James Gichuru-Rironi Project will be a major game-changer for urban and transit traffic in Nairobi and Kiambu counties after its projected completion in January 2023,” KeNHA announced.
A Chinese contractor was awarded the tender for the project which includes 26km of the main road and 17.5km of collector roads.
The project suffered setbacks in the early days due to land acquisition and compensation issues.
