NAIROBI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta confirmed on Sunday that 11 paramilitary police officers who protect him are among the 33 people who died on Saturday night when a truck carrying inflammable substances rammed into several vehicles before bursting into flames along Nairobi-Naivasha Highway.
Kenyatta through his spokesman Manoah Esaipisu also confirmed that some 33 people died and several others injured in the "the grisly and unnecessary accident."
"The fatalities included 11 officers from the General Service Unit (GSU) who provide VIP protection, including to His Excellency the President," Esispiu said in a statement issued in Nairobi.
"President Uhuru Kenyatta wishes to express his condolences to the families of all the bereaved, including the young families of the gallant officers from the GSU. He also wishes all the injured quick recovery," Esipisu added.
He said the president's thoughts and prayers are with the families of those who have lost their lives. He joined all Kenyans in praying for the families affected, that they have the strength to overcome this tragedy.
The accident that left 13 vehicles on fire at around 9:30 p.m. on Saturday paralyzed traffic along the busy highway. A lorry carrying petroleum goods from Mombasa to Kampala in Uganda rammed into the vehicles before bursting into flames.
Some motorists heading to Nairobi were caught up in the Saturday evening incident with majority of them burnt beyond recognition.
Meanwhile, the government and relatives have embarked on the painful and long process of identifying victims of the Naivasha accident with majority of them burnt beyond recognition.
At the Naivasha mortuary, emotions ran high as relatives moved in to identify the bodies.
According to the superintendent Joseph Mburu, the mortuary was too small to handle all the bodies.
Mburu said that some of the bodies could only be identified through DNA tests which would be conducted in Nairobi.
"Majority of the bodies in our mortuary are badly burnt making it hard to identify them physically thus the need for further tests," he said.
"The government has decided to transfer all the bodies to Chiromo mortuary where DNA tests will be conducted to help identify the bodies," Mburu added, noting that the capacity of the morgue is 12 bodies.
He at the same time added that all those who had been admitted in the facility had been transferred to Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) for specialized treatment.
"After the accident we received nine patients, with majority suffering from burn wounds and fractures and we managed to raise our staff who attended to them before they were transferred," he said.
Despite the ongoing doctors and nurses' strike, Mburu praised the response of his officers who responded to the disaster and assisted those injured in time.
"We had some very good response from the available medics who attended to the victims before we transferred them to KNH," he said.
The road was rendered impassable for over three hours as fire fighters from Naivasha sub-county moved in to contain the fire.
Ministry of Transport Principal Secretary Irungu Nyakera has admitted that the spot where the tragic accident took place does not have adequate signage.
Nyakera said there needs to be an audit of the design of the bumps that were erected at the spot earlier this year, saying they need to be sure whether there is a better way of doing it.
"What we are looking at is the design of the bumps to see whether there is a better way of doing it, maybe they are too sharp," he told journalists in Nairobi.
He, however, defended the decision to erect the bumps at the spot saying they were erected at the request of locals in the area who complained of a number of accidents caused by speeding vehicles.
"The residents of that area said it was either we put the bumps as a government or they will put them themselves," he said. The PS also noted that before one gets to the bumps there are rumble strips to alert the driver that there are bumps ahead.
