Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) and Kenya Railways have formed a joint technical committee to investigate last week’s tragic collision between a staff bus and a cargo train in Naivasha, which claimed nine lives and left over a dozen others injured.
The probe will be conducted in collaboration with the traffic police, as bereaved families begin laying their loved ones to rest.
The accident, which occurred on Thursday afternoon, August 7, near the Morendat area, involved a bus ferrying 32 KPC employees home after the end of their morning work shift which was struck by a cargo train at a railway crossing due to poor visibility caused by fog.
According to preliminary reports, the cargo train struck the bus at the rail crossing, killing seven people instantly while two more succumbed to their injuries while receiving treatment.
The fatal incident left over 18 people hospitalised at various hospitals in Naivasha, with most of them suffering from waist and back injuries.
On Wednesday afternoon, an emotional memorial service was held at the Morendat Training and Conference Centre, attended by grieving relatives, KPC management, colleagues, and friends.
Speakers remembered the victims as hard-working, dedicated individuals whose sudden loss had left a deep void in both their families and the company.
KPC Managing Director Joe Sang told mourners that the company had taken immediate steps to support those affected, covering all medical and funeral expenses.
“We have formed a technical committee that will work with Kenya Railways and the police to determine what happened so that we don’t have a repeat of this,” he said.
KPC Board Chairperson Faith Boinnet described the accident as one of the darkest moments in the company’s history, pledging continued support to bereaved families.
She also indicated that the question of compensation would be addressed once the investigation concludes.
“We hope the findings will give clarity to the cause of this incident so that we can institute necessary measures to prevent such a tragedy in future,” she added.
Alex Bore, who lost his sister in the crash and who spoke on behalf of the families, described the pain and sorrow they were enduring after losing their family members, friends and relatives.
He, however, thanked KPC for its assistance during and after the tragedy, which temporarily disrupted operations at the busy oil and gas training facility in the Morendat area along the Naivasha-Kasarani road.
KPC Human Resource Manager Dina Kirwa also recounted the swift response at the scene, where employees, residents, and medical teams worked side by side to rescue survivors and rush them to the hospital.
Authorities say the investigation will focus on the sequence of events leading to the crash, safety protocols at the railway crossing, and possible mechanical or human errors.
According to data released by the Ministry of Transport, crash statistics showed that the country experienced 2,933 fatalities between January and August this year.
The Cabinet Secretary for Roads and Transport, Davis Chirchir, early this week announced a move to conduct safety audits on the killer roads and highways across the country to ascertain major causes of increased fatalities and deploy much-needed interventions to save lives.
By Erastus Gichohi
