It’s feared the vehicle’s brakes failed – causing it to plummet 131ft into the steep ditch on Sunday evening in central Kenya. The bus – owned by Modern Coast company – was traveling from Meru to the port city of Mombasa when it veered off the Nithi Bridge, the Daily Nation, and Standard newspaper reports.
Senior police official Rono Brunei said the vehicle “must have developed brake failure because it was at a very high speed when the accident happened”. County Commissioner Nobert Komora confirmed that initial investigations showed the bus’s brakes may have failed, Nation reports.
It’s understood the fault may have stopped the driver from properly turning on a sharp bend at the bridge.
Komora said: “We are sadly announcing to the nation we have lost 24 people in a grisly Modern Coast Bus accident on the notorious Nithi River Bridge along the Meru – Nairobi highway.”
Shocking pictures from the scene reveal the devastating aftermath of the smash, with the bus completely destroyed.
Emergency services were pictured grappling with the wreckage as horrified onlookers watched on from above.
It’s unclear how many people were travelling on the bus at the time of the crash, but authorities have confirmed 24 deaths so far.
