• Driver lost control of the vehicle as he tried to negotiate a corner
• Motorists spent hours at the scene before police removed wreckage
Image: /THE STAR
A fuel tanker crashed along Mai Mahiu-Limuru road, spilling petrol on the busy road on Wednesday night.
The driver of the trailer lost control of the vehicle as he tried to negotiate a corner of leading to the accident.
Residents from nearby villages rushed to siphon the petrol that was being transported from Nairobi to a fuel station in Nakuru.
Motorists using the road watched in awe as residents scooped petrol oblivious of the danger it posed.
There was heavy traffic stretching several kilometers on both sides of the road. Motorists spent hours at the scene before police arrived to clear the wreckage.
Motorist Geoffrey Mwangi said the driver of the trailer failed to negotiate one of the sections at the escarpments resulting in a crash. No one was injured.
“Kenyans never learn from such episodes. We watched in horror as the young and old rushed to the scene to scoop petrol from the tanker,” he said.
Another driver Hussein Abdi who was ferrying goods to Uganda said the road had become prone to accidents especially by long distance vehicles.
“The solution is to consider expanding the road or allow us to use the Nairobi-Nakuru highway,” he said.
A passenger, Mary Goreti, said they spent the night in the cold. She said many commuters had to cut short their journeys. Goreti said the road needs an upgrade.