Tragic Accident Involving 76 students lands Top Kenyan School in Trouble

mary kulundu

July 27, 2017 9:26 AM

The accident saw some of the pupils lose their limbs while three were killed on the spot

A tragic accident that happened six years ago has come back to haunt Loreto Convent Msongari school after 76 pupils were badly injured and three others killed during the unfortunate incident which hit headlines.

One of the pupils who were on the school bus when the accident happened is seeking a whopping Sh26.5 million compensation from the institution.

Madikizera Otieno sued the school for negligence highlighting that the head teacher opted to overcrowd them in one bus instead of using two buses during a field trip.

The 19-year-old recounted the happening of the fateful day stating that: My mother had dropped me off to school for a standard 7 and 8 trip.

“Since we were many we asked the headmistress whether we could use two buses – one for class seven pupils the other one for class eight - during the trip but she instead that we overcrowd in one bus,” Ms Otieno who is now a Law student at the University of Nottingham in the UK said.

The teenager told the court that after visiting two factories in Meru County and were proceeding to their hotel rooms, their bus rammed into Kerugoya Boys Secondary School vehicle causing their bus to roll several times.

This occurred in Buuri Sub-County at around 6 pm.

“I remember hearing screeches as the driver tried to apply brakes,” she said.

The law student noted that she incurred huge bills amounting to millions of shillings.

“I was admitted to Nairobi Hospital for 42 days and referred to Bupa Cromwell Hospital in London. I suffered serious multiple injuries and incurred heavy expenses for which I seek compensation,” she stated.

Ms Otieno accused the school of failing to check "the road worthiness of the bus, and for failing to ensure it was properly serviced.

She also said that the driver drove recklessly and dangerously without due regard to the safety of pupils on board.

Her father George told Justice Richard Mwenda that the school should pay his daughter Sh14 million in special damages, and a another Sh12.5 million for future medical expenses.

The case will be heard on October 30.

mary kulundu