At least 34 people were killed in central Kenya on Sunday night after a passenger bus fell off a bridge, the region’s prefect announced Monday night. The statement from the NTSA, the National Transport and Safety Authority, first reported 33 deaths and said operations of the bus company, Modern Coast Express Ltd, had been suspended.
“A thorough multi-agency investigation into the accident and an assessment of the operator’s operational safety standards is underway,” according to the statement.
The bus plunged about forty meters into the Nithi river while crossing a bridge known to be an accident-prone “black spot”, about fifty kilometers from the city of Meru from where it had departed for the port of Mombasa (southeast).
three missing persons
According to the latest report communicated by the prefect of Tharaka Nithi County, Norbert Komora, the balance now stands at 34 dead.
“There were 45 people on the bus and so far we have counted 42. These are the people who are in hospital or who have died. We are still looking for three,” he added.
On Monday morning, the prefect had indicated that the search was ongoing and that rescuers were trying to “recover the remains”.
Source: BFM TV
