It was on Saturday morning. Children were out of school and the angel of death was waiting for them!
January 31, 2009 remains a bad day for families of several people who perished in one of the worst tragedies to have ever happened in Kenya.
On the material day, a tanker was transporting petrol along the Salgaa stretch as usual until the driver and the turn boy decided to take a rest.
In a flash of a second, the tanker, in unclear circumstances, rolled and spilled the fuel.To residents, the turn of events was a goldmine.
They rushed to the scene with jerry cans to make a kill.
Witnesses report says that several police officers had arrived at the Sachagwan scene but did not seal off the tanker; instead, they started collecting bribes to allow scooping of fuel.
One ‘mad’ man, who didn’t have any cash to bribe, decided to spoil the party for everyone by lighting a match stick. Boom!
The result was the death of more than 100 people!
The incident sent Kenya into mourning.
The then Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka, Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Security minister George Saitoti, visited the area and told the nation to pray.
It was one of Kenya’s worst tragedies! #historynow