At least 24 people were killed and another 24 injured when a passenger bus collided with a truck on Kenya’s main Nairobi to Mombasa highway on Sunday, prompting renewed calls to declare road crashes a national disaster.
The crash occurred around 7 a.m. in the Kanga area near Mtito Andei in Makueni County. The passengers were travelling back to the coastal city of Mombasa after attending their church pastor’s funeral in western Kenya. Many of the injured were taken to Mtito Andei Hospital for treatment, according to the facility’s medical superintendent, Paul Kisienya.
The circumstances of the collision remain disputed. Kenya’s National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) said preliminary information suggested improper overtaking had led to a head-on collision. However, passenger Spenza Mudave told the Associated Press that the truck struck the bus from behind, causing it to overturn.
The NTSA has called for road crashes to be declared a national disaster, arguing that the scale of fatalities requires urgent, coordinated government action. The authority said Kenya records about 20,000 crashes and more than 5,000 road deaths annually. It said a national disaster designation could help mobilise funding, strengthen enforcement and establish clearer accountability across government agencies.
The latest tragedy occurred about three weeks after a separate crash on the same highway killed 17 people. That accident, on October 3 near Mlima Kiu in Makueni County, involved several vehicles and claimed the lives of Catholic pilgrims travelling from Mombasa to a shrine in Nakuru County.
The repeated fatal crashes have renewed concerns about safety along the busy highway, which connects Kenya’s capital with its principal coastal port. Authorities have previously cited speeding and poor road conditions among factors contributing to crashes, while several stretches of the route have been identified as accident black spots.
President William Ruto expressed condolences to the victims’ families and ordered inspections of all public service vehicles to check compliance with safety regulations. He also urged drivers to exercise caution and obey traffic rules.
The crash adds to concerns over Kenya’s road safety record, with the NTSA warning that road deaths continue to take a heavy toll on families, healthcare services and the economy. The authority says stronger coordination and sustained enforcement are needed to reduce fatalities.
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