A bus carrying mourners from a funeral crashed in western Kenya on Friday, August 8, 2025, killing 25 people and injuring 20 others when the vehicle overturned into a ditch along the Kisumu-Kakamega Highway.
The driver lost control of the secondary school bus while approaching a roundabout at high speed, causing the vehicle to veer off the road and roll into a ditch. The bus was being used for funeral transport and carried no students at the time of the accident.
Police reports indicate that 10 women, 10 men, and a 10-year-old girl died at the scene. Four additional passengers later died in the hospital, bringing the total fatalities to 25. Among the injured, survivors ranged from a baby less than one year old to elderly passengers.
The passengers were returning from a burial ceremony at Nyahera and traveling to Nyakach, a distance of approximately 62 kilometers. Authorities believe all passengers were members of the same extended family who had attended the funeral together.
Peter Maina, a regional traffic enforcement officer for Nyanza province, described how the “vehicle lost control, veered, rolled onto the other side of the road.” The accident occurred in an area notorious for frequent deadly collisions.
Kenya’s Ministry of Health immediately launched an urgent blood drive to help survivors and extended condolences to the bereaved families. The ministry also urged motorists to exercise greater caution on the nation’s roads, particularly given the country’s ongoing struggle with fatal traffic accidents.
President William Ruto called on authorities to quickly investigate those responsible for any acts of negligence leading to the accident and address all traffic violations to ensure road safety across the country. The National Transport and Safety Authority of Kenya pledged to assist in the investigation into the crash’s cause.
Fredrick Ouma Oluga, the principal secretary in charge of medical services in Kenya, confirmed that dozens of survivors were admitted to Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital in Kisumu. The hospital established three operating theaters and a blood transfusion center to treat the injured passengers.
The crash represents part of a deadly week for Kenya’s transportation sector. On Thursday, nine people died when a bus collided with a train in Naivasha. Earlier in the week, six people were killed when a light aircraft belonging to a medical charity crashed in Nairobi. Another accident near Nairobi on Saturday claimed seven additional lives.
Road accidents remain a persistent problem in Kenya and the broader East African region, where roads are often narrow and poorly maintained with numerous potholes. Police frequently attribute these accidents to speeding drivers and inadequate infrastructure conditions.
Statistics reveal a troubling trend in Kenya’s road safety record. Between 2020 and 2021, road deaths in the country increased by more than 20 percent. In 2021 alone, more than 4,500 people were killed and over 16,000 were injured in traffic accidents across the nation.
The Kisumu-Kakamega Highway, where this latest tragedy occurred, has developed a reputation as one of Kenya’s most dangerous roadways. Local authorities and traffic enforcement officers have repeatedly identified this stretch as a location where deadly accidents occur with alarming frequency.
Community members in the affected villages described the profound impact of losing so many family members in a single incident. The crash has left multiple children orphaned and shattered extended family networks that formed the backbone of the local community structure.
Hospital officials continued treating survivors throughout the weekend, with medical staff working around the clock to provide care for those with serious injuries. The blood donation drive launched by the Ministry of Health drew responses from both relatives of the victims and members of the general public.
The investigation into the exact cause of the crash remains ongoing, with authorities examining factors including vehicle maintenance, driver behavior, road conditions and weather at the time of the accident. The National Transport and Safety Authority indicated it would conduct a comprehensive review of the incident.