This archive report was first published on 25 July 2021.
On a fateful Sunday, July 25, 2021, a quick-thinking passenger took to the Sikika Road Safety Facebook page to express concern over the safety of himself and fellow passengers aboard a Nairobi-bound bus. The bus, operated by TSS SACCO, had been through several police checks unnoticed, but its mechanical issues were a different story.
According to Douglas Ogega, a passenger who had written to the Sikika page, the bus had developed serious mechanical problems, including faulty brakes and gear issues, at Kegati. 'It's faulty, no brakes and it has issues again with engaging gears,' Ogega's message read.
Thanks to the prompt response from the Sikika page and the Kisii County Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the Deputy County Commissioner, and the Kisii Base Commander, the police were able to track down the bus within an hour. The bus and its passengers were then ferried to Kisii Police station, where the police confirmed the mechanical problems.
Fortunately, all passengers were refunded their bus fare by the bus company management. The incident serves as a reminder to passengers to speak up against such incidents and to have emergency service providers' contacts handy.
Just a few days prior, on July 21, 2021, four people lost their lives in a matatu accident along the Mombasa-Nairobi Highway. In Kenya, over 2,000 lives are lost annually in road accidents.
