A wheel that was being repaired exploded and killed two men and seriously injured another in Kisumu County.
In reports by witnesses, the three – a welder, a lorry driver and a third man – were welding a broken wheel but had not completely deflated the tyre.
Pressure
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It is said the wheel came loose as pressure built up in the tyre, hitting the three men, who were monitoring the process.
“I was just here where I fry fish when I heard an explosion and saw two people tossed into the air,” said Elizabeth Oginga, who runs a shop just meters from the welding shop.
According to her account, the wheel shot into the air and hit an electricity line before tearing into one of the tin-roofed shops.
Fractures
“We took off in panic as the men fell back on the ground,” she said, adding that both had deep skull fractures and broken limbs.
The welder was identified as Peter Ogot, the lorry driver as George Ouma, and the survivor as Everest Okoth.
Ms Oginga said she heard one of the men warn that the tyre was overinflated, but his concerns were dismissed just before the explosion.
Police said investigations showed that pressure had built up in the tyre, causing the wheel to come off.