Police have launched investigations into rampant cases of the stoning of Kenya Railways trains at Muhoroni area along the Kisumu-Nairobi rail line.
According to Evans Getembe, the officer in charge of Kisumu Railways Police Station, railroad officials have reported three separate incidents affecting the train from Nairobi at night.
“We have the report that the windows of the train have been pelted with stones three times on different three occasions,” Getembe said.
The officials complained that the stones damage glass windows endangering the lives of passengers.
The latest incident, the police boss said, happened on Sunday, January 1, between Koru and Kibigori. No passenger was hurt during the occurrence.
“Last night, the train was pelted with stones and luckily there were no casualties. Those pelting the stones reportedly target the train’s window panes which risk the lives of passengers,” Getembe said.
“The broken windows also expose the passengers to cold, and the train management incurs huge losses as they usually repair the broken window panes.”
He warned that stern action will be taken against anyone found culpable, adding that such attacks amount to economic sabotage.
“Stoning of the train is an act of sabotage to the country’s economy. I urge the community around here to be should be enlightened on the economic value of the train to them and the nation,” Getembe said.
The Nairobi-Kisumu locomotive began operations in December 2021 following the rehabilitation of the Kisumu Nakuru line.
The railway line had been lying idle for more than two decades after rail services collapsed in the 1990s.
