At least 17 people, most of them Catholic pilgrims, have been killed in a road crash in Kenya’s Salama area along a major highway leading to the port city of Mombasa.
The accident occurred in the early hours of Saturday when a truck driver reportedly attempted to overtake another vehicle.
“We witnessed an accident that is quite tragic,” said Justus Mwanzia, a member of the county assembly.
Mwanzia said a minivan carrying 14 pilgrims and its driver collided with the truck, killing all those travelling in the vehicle. Three people in the truck were also killed.
The pilgrims were travelling to a prayer site in Nakuru County, west of the capital, Nairobi, according to Martin Kivuva, Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Mombasa.
Kivuva expressed deep sorrow over the deaths, saying he and members of the Catholic community were “saddened with lots of grief” by the tragedy.
Kenya, like several other African countries, continues to face serious road safety challenges. Authorities frequently attribute crashes to factors including speeding, dangerous overtaking, poorly maintained vehicles and inadequate road conditions.
The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) urged motorists to exercise extreme caution, avoid dangerous overtaking and observe lane discipline.
The agency identified the stretch of road where the crash occurred as a “black spot” and said recommendations had previously been made to address safety concerns along the route.
President William Ruto expressed condolences to the victims’ families, friends, parishioners and the wider Catholic community following the tragedy.
