Six students killed in hit-and-run on Kitui-Kibwezi road

At least six schoolchildren were killed in a road accident at Wiitu shopping centre on the Kitui-Kibwezi road in Kitui county on Friday morning.

According to police, the victims include three primary school students and three secondary school students.

National Police Service spokeswoman Dr Resila Onyango said five girls were among the victims.

She said the incident occurred at about 6:20 a.m. when the children were on their way to school.

They were three students from Kyaoni Primary School and three from Kyaoni Secondary School.

“They died on the spot and the police are handling the case,” she said.

Vincent Lomachary, deputy district commissioner of Ikutha, said the learner drivers were hit by a Probox car while crossing the road.

He said preliminary findings showed the car was speeding at the time of the accident.

He described the incident as tragic.

The driver of the vehicle fled the scene of the accident and later surrendered at Mutomo Police Station.

He was arrested and the vehicle impounded while investigations into the incident continue, police said.

This is the latest accident of its kind in the country, amid calls to put an end to this scourge.

The number of fatal accidents has increased as a result of efforts to curb this trend.

Up to 4,000 people die in individual accidents every year.

Many others suffer injuries in the incidents that negatively impact their families.

Some of the accidents are still unexplained, officials say, but efforts are underway to clarify the accidents.

According to the National Transport and Safety Authority, hit-and-runs, tire blowouts and out-of-control cars and motorcycles are the most common causes of fatal accidents.

Incorrect overtaking and failure to stay in the correct lane and the resulting head-on collisions are also cited as causes.