A middle-aged man died on the spot after he was run over by a speeding lorry along the Matuu-Ekalakala road in Yatta Sub-county, Machakos on Monday
Confirming the incident, the Yatta Sub-county Police Commander, Joseph Karanja said the deceased was trying to cross the road when the tragic accident happened.
The Police Boss said that the driver of the lorry escaped after hitting the man and that the police have launched a manhunt to arrest him.
“It was around 2pm, a middle-aged man was crossing the road when he was hit by a lorry, he died on the spot. The lorry driver didn’t stop instead he accelerated and fled the scene,” said Karanja.
“The lorry was later found dumped a few kilometers away and the driver could not be traced. We took the lorry and it’s in our custody now,” he added.
He, however, urged pedestrians to be cautious while on the road and warned motorists flouting traffic rules of dire consequences.
The body of the victim was taken to the Matuu Level Four Hospital mortuary awaiting burial arrangements.
In June 15th this year, three people died in a grisly road accident that involved a 14-seater matatu along the Machakos-Kitui highway while ten others were rushed to Machakos level Five Referral hospital with multiple injuries.
The Matuu accident came barely a month after the Interior Principal Secretary, Karanja Kibicho, urged all road users to be cautious while on the road and obey all traffic rules and regulations as the safety of others entirely depend on them.
Kibicho who was speak at the Makutano junction in Machakos on November 18th during the marking of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims urged Kenyans to change their attitudes and shun from blame games.
According to the World Health Organization between 3,000 and 13,000 Kenyans, lose their lives in road traffic crashes every year.
WHO further states that the majority of these people are vulnerable road users mostly pedestrians, motorcyclists, and cyclists where nearly one-third of deaths are among passengers, many of whom are killed in unsafe forms of public transportation.
According to the latest survey by the National Transport Safety Authority, more males are the victims of road traffic fatalities than females, which indicates that 85.5 per cent of fatalities are males while 16.7 percent are females.
By Rachael Kilonzo
