Widow: Nithi bus driver lamented about bad brakes

The driver of the ill-fated bus that plunged into the Nithi river on Sunday night, killing 35 people had complained of faulty brakes in the days leading to the accident, it merged yesterday.

Beatrice Wakodhia, the widow of driver Paul Kamau, yesterday told the media in Mombasa how her husband had complained about the vehicle’s brakes in the past two weeks, but no action was taken by the management.

Beatrice said her husband last communicated with their daughter at the weekend when she (Beatrice) attended a parents’ meeting at St Teresa Kithimu Girls Secondary School in Embu county.

The driver’s widow said she did not communicate with her husband until Sunday evening when she started receiving calls from friends and relatives inquiring on his whereabouts after learning of the accident.

 “My daughter wanted to speak to her father and I called him and they spoke. He promised to send her money, and since then we did not speak again. At around 8.00pm, I received a call from somebody enquiring about the accident involving my husband’s bus.  I couldn’t reach him on the phone. Then I watched the breaking news on television at 9pm,” she said.

“My husband had raised a lot of complaints about the vehicle, to a point where I advised him to just abandon the job and return home. For two weeks, he complained about faulty brakes but the management turned a deaf ear,” the widow said. The driver had been employed by the bus company since 2018, according to his brother, Joseph Gitonga.

He previously worked at Moi Kadzonzo Girls Secondary School in Mariakani, Kilifi county, as a driver before resigning.

“Since February, it has been hard for us because they have not been paid. He used to come home from work but with no money,” she narrated.

The family spoke as the death toll reached 35 after more bodies of casualties in the ill-fated bus were recovered during an overnight search and rescue operation at the scene of the crash.

Eastern Regional Commissioner Evans Achoki said two more passengers died yesterday afternoon, raising the death toll to 35. “We have managed to account for all the 45 passengers on board,” he said.

Ten people survived the grisly accident and were rushed to Chuka General Hospital and PCEA Chogoria Mission Hospital for treatment.

 Achoki said the Modern Coast Bus lost control and plunged into River Nithi along the Meru-Nairobi Highway on Sunday evening after it hit a Nissan Xtrail car. It fell off the bridge into the river, about 40 metres below.

Sharp corner

Achoki said that, according to investigations, the bus could have developed brake failure, making it hard for the driver to navigate the sharp corner at the bridge.

According to the Chuka traffic police commander Philip Akoro, the bus hit a Nissan Xtrail vehicle that was coming from the opposite direction, after which the driver lost control.

The bus, registration number KCF 614U, was destined for Mombasa from Meru. A total of 24 people died on the spot.

Yesterday, the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) halted the operations of the bus company with immediate effect. “This applies to all the 31 vehicles belonging to the company. A thorough multi-agency probe into the crash and an evaluation of the operator’s safety operational standards are currently underway,” said NTSA director George Njao.

Yesterday, a rescue team from Kenya National Highway Authority (KeNHA), Kenya Red Cross and Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) were at the scene to help remove the bus wreckage.

The rescue team will continue with a rescue mission to find the other missing five passengers.

“Motorists should exercise caution as they approach the Nithi Bridge, and observe the signs indicating a black spot. We are working with KeNHA to put up more signs for motorists as they approach the bridge,” the local traffic boss said.

Achoki and Tharaka Nithi Governor Muthomi Njuki said the road would be redesigned and properly constructed by KeNHA to avoid more accidents in future.

According to witnesses, the bus was speeding and, upon reaching the Nithi Bridge, the driver lost control.

“I was going home riding my boda boda. I had just come across the bus which was coming from Meru near the Nithi River. I had not gone far when I heard a loud bang, prompting me to go back and find out what had happened. The bus I had come across had plunged into the river and passengers were screaming for help,” the rider said.

He added that bodies were strewn all over the river and its banks, while other bodies were trapped in the wreckage.

High speed

“From the way the bus plunged into the river, it looks like it had faulty brakes but it was also being driven at a very high speed, maybe that is why the driver could not control it, “the witness recalled.

At the Chuka General Hospital, relatives of the passengers fought back tears after learning of the fate of their loved ones.

Tharaka Nithi journalist Mutuiri Gitonga, who was among the first responders, narrated how he had rescued an infant and helped rush him to hospital, only to succumb to the injuries while undergoing treatment at Chuka hospital.

“I rescued a child the age of my last born from the wreckage and signaled a motorist who was driving by to take him to the hospital, only for him to succumb to his injuries while undergoing treatment,” Gitonga narrated.