Safety concerns resurface after bus incident on Likoni ferry channel
An incident in which six passengers and a bus driver narrowly escaped death at the Likoni ferry crossing channel on Sunday has revived debate on the enforcement of safety measures at the channel.
The six passengers and their driver sustained minor injuries after a bus they were travelling in slid backwards towards the Indian Ocean as it was trying to climb the ramp heading towards the mainland.
In 2019, after a woman and her daughter lost their lives when their vehicle slid from one of the ferries into the ocean, thec(KFS) tightened enforcement of safety rules.
Mariam Kighenda and her four-year-old daughter Amanda Mutheu were inside the vehicle as the ferry took passengers from Mombasa mainland to the Island when the accident occurred.
Among the measures put in place required enforcement officers to ensure that all passengers alight their vehicles whenever using the ferries.
According to Julius Koech, the director of maritime safety at the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) this safety requirement has to be enforced at all times.
Mr Koech absolved the ferry operators of blame concerning the Sunday incident.
“It’s a standard operating procedure that has been there and should be followed. There was no issue with the ferries and we conducted their inspection and gave a clean bill of health to operate,” he said.
Mr Isaack Yasin who was part of the team involved in the rescue operation said there are usually exemptions made for special groups such as the disabled, elderly and parents traveling with little children.
A statement issued by the KFS showed that the bus incident occurred at around 8:30am.
“The Chania Executive bus lost control and overturned at the mainland Likoni ramp. Fortunately, there were no casualties reported in the incident,” it stated.
Rescue and emergency services responded to the scene and all the six passengers plus the driver were evacuated to hospital for treatment.
The first responders secured the vehicle with cables and ropes to prevent it from further drifting into the ocean as they waited for more recovery efforts.
“It was unable to ascend the ferry ramp into the mainland but reared and tipped over. No fatality but some minor injuries,” said Mombasa County Police Commander Peter Kimani.
The vehicle temporarily blocked the channel but was finally retrieved and ferry operations resumed to normalcy.
Mr Laki Samba, an employee from the Chania Executive bus company office in Likoni said the bus had arrived from Matuu in Machakos county. He stated that all on board were accounted for.
A report by the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee in 2019 recommended stiff penalties for ferry passengers who fail to adhere to safety regulations while using the ferries.
“The penalties should be enforced strictly to ensure compliance by ferry users,” the committee which was chaired by the then Mvita Member of Parliament who is currently Mombasa governor Abdulswamad Nassir stated.
The parliamentary inquiry was as a result of the September 2019 incident on Mv Harambee which claimed the life of Ms Kighenda and her daughter.
In 2020, the government dissolved KFS functions and merged the parastatal with KPA in order to give it a new lease of life.
The dissolution paved the way for new management of the facility which has so far seen refurbishment of some of the critical infrastructure including the ramps.
kmutai@ke.nationmedia.co
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