Burial underway for 4 family members killed in Ngoluni road crash

A sombre mood has engulfed Ikanga in Kitui County as the burial of four family members who died in a tragic road accident at Ngoluni Market in Makueni County gets underway.

The victims, Jemimah Mbinya, 14-year-old Chris Musili, 11-year-old Caleb Musili, and two-year-old Esther Musili, were killed on Friday, November 21, 2024, when a lorry rammed into the matatu they were travelling in along the Ngoluni–Tawa road, a busy rural corridor that links Machakos, Makueni and Kitui.

Also watch: Road fatalities hit 4,200 as NTSA targets festive season safety

The children’s mother had travelled to pick up her son from Makueni Boys High School, where he had just completed his KCSE exams, before the fatal collision occurred.

Two siblings who were also in the vehicle survived but sustained injuries. The father, Musili Sammy, was away at work when the tragedy struck.

The accident, which also claimed the lives of three other passengers, renewed public concern over rising fatalities involving public service vehicles and heavy trucks on Eastern Kenya’s road network.

Ngoluni area, in particular, has recorded frequent crashes in recent years due to high traffic volumes, speeding and poor road discipline.

According to data from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), Kenya continues to record some of the highest road carnage numbers in the region.

By late 2024, more than 4,300 people had died on Kenyan roads, with pedestrians, motorcyclists and passengers in public service vehicles forming the largest share of victims.

Also watch: NTSA rolls out six bold actions to curb holiday road carnage

NTSA has repeatedly flagged the Machakos–Makueni–Kitui axis as a high-risk zone, where a combination of speeding and overtaking along narrow sections contributes to severe crashes.

As the family lays their loved ones to rest, community members, clergy and local leaders have reiterated calls for stricter enforcement of traffic rules, improved road engineering in accident-prone sections, and greater accountability among PSV operators and long-distance truck drivers.

The burial service, attended by hundreds of mourners, has been marked by emotional tributes to the young lives lost. Relatives have described the four as “bright, loving and full of promise,” urging authorities to act decisively to prevent more families from suffering similar heartbreak.

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