The terrifying reality of Kenya’s treacherous road infrastructure has claimed another victim after a public service vehicle veered off a bridge and plunged into a swollen river in Murang’a County.
What began as a routine commute for scores of passengers transformed into a chaotic struggle for life as the matatu breached the guardrails and descended into the depths, leaving one passenger dead and several others fighting for their breath in a submerged metal wreck.
This is not merely an accident; it is a structural betrayal. The twisted horror of the incident lies in the speed at which a vehicle meant for mobility became a cage. Witnesses described a harrowing scene where the vehicle disappeared beneath the surface within seconds, leaving rescuers to battle the current to pull survivors from the wreckage.
The victim, who was pronounced dead at the scene, represents the latest statistic in a growing list of lives lost to a transport system that seems increasingly indifferent to safety.
As survivors were rushed to nearby medical facilities with varying degrees of trauma, the community was left grappling with the haunting image of the vehicle’s final plunge.
The bridge, which was supposed to be a conduit for progress, served instead as a gateway to a watery grave. The urgency of this tragedy highlights a glaring failure in road maintenance and driver accountability that continues to turn Kenyan rivers into graveyards.
Police have launched an investigation into the mechanical state of the vehicle and the circumstances leading to the loss of control, but for the families involved, the investigation is a cold comfort.
The river has already taken its toll, and as the wreckage is hauled from the mud, the question remains: how many more vehicles must fall before the authorities treat these bridges as the high-risk zones they truly are? The silence of the river has been broken, but the outcry for justice is only just beginning.
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