Kijabe: Boda boda operators frantically dismantle crashed pickup to save trapped driver

Traffic along the Nakuru-Nairobi highway was momentarily disrupted at the Kijabe junction after a grisly road accident that left the occupants of a badly damaged vehicle trapped in the wreckage.

Videos circulating online show boda boda riders and other bystanders scrambling atop a mangled Toyota Hilux, which was emitting light smoke.

Armed with axes and makeshift tools, the group tore through twisted metal and shattered glass in a frantic attempt to reach the injured driver.

In one clip, the man can be seen breathing heavily, his shirt stained with blood from the impact. At one point, the rescuers even mobilised a lorry to help pull apart the wreckage in a desperate bid to free him.

The cause of the accident remains unconfirmed, though unverified reports online suggest a possible head-on collision between the pickup and a lorry.

By press time, authorities and emergency services had yet to issue an official statement.

The incident comes barely a week after several people were injured in a crash at Chepsir along the Kericho-Nakuru highway.

Reports indicated that a lorry lost control and rammed head-on into a passenger bus before colliding with other vehicles. A private car and a trailer also veered off the road while attempting to avoid the wreck.

Images from the Chepsir crash showed a badly mangled lorry with its windscreen and mirrors shattered, while the bus sustained extensive damage to its front section.

The latest accidents add to mounting concerns over road safety, with the Ministry of Transport recently reporting that 2,933 lives were lost between January and mid-August.

CS Davis Chirchir further noted that 80 accidents occurred in just four days shortly before the report's release.