BY OSABUOHIEN VIVIAN ROSE
A plane crash which occurred near Malindi Airport in coastal Kenya on Friday claimed three lives and left a devastating look, local authorities confirmed.
The light aircraft crash landed in the town of Kwachocha, along the busy Malindi-Mombasa highway, few meters from the airport.
Eyewitnesses described harrowing scenes as the plane struck bystanders and burst into flames upon impact.
Salim Mwayaya, a local witness, recounted the horror: “We were on our way to Malindi when we saw the plane crash. The wing hit a woman who was on a bike and severed her head. The plane then caught fire, and the pilots jumped out and were taken to the hospital alive. That is all I saw.”
Authorities identified the victims as a motorcycle taxi rider who was burned to death and two others struck by parts of the disintegrating aircraft.
The crash has reignited concerns about safety measures in the vicinity of the airport. Rashid Odhiambo, a Member of the County Assembly, emphasized the urgency of enforcing precautions: “This crashed plane is not a commercial plane, so we can say it is an accident that has happened because any accident can happen anywhere. But what I am saying is that safety precautions have to be taken along the airport, especially on this road which is next to the airport.”
The Kwachocha neighborhood, where the crash occurred, has been at the center of a legal dispute over the expansion of Malindi Airport.
Residents have challenged government plans to extend the airport’s boundaries without resolving land compensation issues.
