A Kakamega headteacher was left inconsolable after discovering his wife’s lifeless body at a mortuary in Eldoret, just hours after she had left home in good spirits to celebrate at a wedding.
Geoffrey Andabwa, head teacher at a comprehensive school in Malava, Kakamega County, lost his wife in a road accident at Coromat along the Eldoret-Nakuru Highway late on Friday night.
She was among six people from Mateta village who died on the spot after a lorry ploughed into two vehicles, a Toyota Noah and a Toyota Probox. Five of the victims were women, and three were teachers.
Wedding Trip Turns Tragic Along Nakuru-Eldoret Road
Andabwa’s wife had just completed her duties overseeing national examinations and was travelling with colleagues to a wedding in Nairobi. The group departed on Friday afternoon at around 4 pm.
When his wife stopped answering her phone, the hosts of the wedding rang Andabwa to ask whether he had been in contact with her.
“I am really sad and devastated after viewing my wife’s lifeless body,” he said. “She left home alive. Those who had invited her to attend the wedding of their child called me asking if I have talked to my wife. She said my wife and her other colleagues invited to the wedding were not picking calls.”
A series of distressing phone calls followed, informing him that the vehicle had been involved in a crash and that the injured had been rushed to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret. He went there immediately.
“We went to the emergency department and she was not among the casualties,” Andabwa recounted. “When we got to the mortuary, it was by bad luck. The first body I identified was my partner’s, among the other bodies lying there. I really,” he broke down in tears before he could finish.
Police Launch Investigations
A family friend, Amunga Wasilwa, confirmed the scale of loss within the community, noting that a married couple was among the dead, with the husband still struggling to cope.
Eyewitnesses at the scene said the lorry lost control as its driver allegedly attempted to avoid a fuel tanker that had broken down on the highway. The vehicle, which was travelling from the Nakuru direction, reportedly rammed into the two cars before veering off the road and overturning roughly 100 metres away.
By Saturday afternoon, the lorry had still not been removed from the scene, with debris, clothing and passengers’ belongings strewn across the road. Police began investigations to establish the full circumstances of the crash.
The wreckage of the Toyota Noah and the Toyota Probox was taken to Taraka Police Station. Uasin Gisu police commander Wilberforce Sicharani urged road users to exercise caution, especially as the festive season approaches.
“I want to appeal to Kenyans, particularly as we approach the festive period, to be cautious and, more importantly, obey traffic rules. We should also ensure that our vehicles are properly,” he said.
The accident occurred exactly three months after a separate crash on the same stretch of highway claimed seven lives.
