A bus carrying mourners from a funeral in western Kenya collided with a cement truck on the Nairobi‑Mombasa highway near Mtito Andei in the Kanga area at about 7:45 am on Sunday, October 25, killing at least 24 people and injuring another 24, police said.
The bus, operated by Power of the Word Church International, had stopped for breakfast shortly before the collision, according to a survivor. The other vehicle was a truck transporting cement. Victims were passengers on the bus, many of whom were mourners returning from their pastor’s funeral.
Violet Mwandonyi, one of the survivors, told reporters that she heard passengers crying out for help from passing motorists. She could not locate her two children who were on the bus.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation. Makueni County Commissioner Abdullahi Khalif said the bus driver had attempted to overtake several vehicles before colliding with the oncoming truck. Kenya’s National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) identified dangerous overtaking as a possible cause, noting that the stretch of road has a history of crashes.
President William Ruto offered condolences and ordered inspections of public‑transport vehicles. Transport Minister Davis Chirchir vowed to step up enforcement against speeding and unsafe overtaking, improve dangerous sections of the road, and strengthen training and checks for commercial drivers. He said the government would work with police, local authorities and lawmakers on these measures, calling for stronger action to reduce deaths.
NTSA figures show 5,009 people died in road crashes in 2025 and 2,150 deaths were recorded in the first half of 2026. The authority estimates about 20,000 crashes occur across Kenya each year and has called for road crashes to be declared a national disaster following the collision.
Authorities are investigating the incident while the government prepares to implement stricter road‑safety protocols. The tragedy comes just over three weeks after another highway crash that killed 17 people, prompting fresh government promises to improve road safety.
