Speed, Miraa and Death: Driver Killed in Grisly Mwea–Embu Highway Crash

A miraa driver lost his life in a horrific road accident after his vehicle collided head-on with a lorry along the busy Mwea–Embu Highway in Kirinyaga County.

The incident, which occurred at around 10:30 a.m. at the notorious Samson Corner, involved a Probox vehicle ferrying miraa and a Canter lorry traveling in the opposite direction.

According to the lorry driver, Nicolas Murithi, he was en route from Nairobi to Chuka when three miraa-loaded Probox vehicles approached at high speed. Two managed to overtake safely, but the third crashed directly into his lorry, killing the driver on the spot.

The impact of the collision was devastating. The Probox veered off and struck a boda boda rider who was carrying his wife and child. The two adults sustained injuries and were rushed to hospital, while the child miraculously escaped unhurt.

Eyewitnesses and residents expressed alarm over the increasing number of fatal accidents along the highway, blaming reckless driving—especially by miraa transport vehicles racing against time to deliver the perishable commodity.

“This road has become deadly. We are losing lives almost daily,” lamented one resident, pointing to a series of recent fatal crashes in nearby areas.

In a disturbing twist, witnesses also claimed that shortly after the crash, another miraa vehicle arrived at the scene and removed the cargo from the wreckage, leaving behind the lifeless body of the driver—sparking outrage among locals.

Police officers from Wang’uru Police Station responded swiftly, moving the body to a mortuary pending identification and towing the damaged vehicles as investigations into the accident continue.