Thousands spend night in cold as train ferrying petrol plunges into the Indian Ocean

Several Mombasa residents and commuters plying Mombasa-Voi route were forced to spend the night in cold following a train accident on Saturday night.This is after a train laden with 250,000 litres of super petrol came off the rails minutes to midnight and overturned in Changamwe.A heavy police contingent was deployed to keep motorists and pedestrians away from a section of the Makupa Causeway following the accident that also affected operations on Sunday.The train was carrying super petrol when it rolled at 11.35pm on Saturday, according to Mombasa County Police Commander Johnston Ipara who confirmed the accident in a statement.The accident left seven of the cargo train's wagons submerged in to the Indian Ocean.The police and relevant authorities rushed to the scene and closed a stretch of the Makupa Causeway to prevent the public from accessing the scene of the accident.Residents of Mikindani, Jomvu, Miritini, Mazeras, Mariakani and those travelling out of Mombasa spent Saturday night in the cold following heavy traffic since no vehicle was moving.Operations at the nearby Moi International Airport were also affected.