The Josa section along the winding Wundanyi-Mwatate Highway in Taita Taveta offers first-time travellers unforgettable scenery.
From the towering cliffs to the breathtaking panoramic views of the low-lying Mwatate region, Josa is undoubtedly one of the most scenic spots in Taita Taveta County. However, the countless deaths and maimed victims of the carnage along the route have made it a nightmare for commuters.
As much as it offers breathtaking scenery, the road has become a killer spot, posing a great risk to motorists, cyclists and residents walking to and from Wundanyi town. The steep climbs and descents, combined with the winding nature of the road, cause vehicles to lose control and skid off the curves, plunging several metres into the ditch.
Despite the clear road signs, the Josa stretch is not without its fatal accidents. Drivers unfamiliar with the road find it difficult to negotiate the steep gradients and twists and turns.
For Janet Shambi, the mention of Josa sends shivers down her spine. In April 2014, exactly nine years ago, she lost her husband after the matatu he was travelling in rolled over at the Josa black spot. He died instantly.
The late Clarice Moss, 35, had to run some errands in Wundanyi town and called her wife, who was two months pregnant, to tell her she would be in Voi in a few minutes.
“I was in Mwatate so we agreed to take another vehicle to Voi and meet at our cyber cafe. Hours later, he had not arrived,” she said.
She says a friend informed her colleague that Mr Moss had died, and they rushed to the scene where they recovered his body. He was the only person to die in the accident.
A road sign at the Josa blackspot on the Wundanyi-Mwatate highway in Taita Taveta County. Despite the glaring road signs, several fatal accidents occur at the stretch.
“Every time I get a report of an accident at Josa, it triggers the pain of my loss. I remember what I saw nine years ago. I remember the matatu was upside down and we had to carry his body up the ditch,” she said.
Nine years on, she is still traumatised by the memory of the incident that robbed her husband, with whom she had lived for just two years.
“We had a bright future ahead of us. My son asks me about his father, whom he never met. I became a widow at a time I didn’t expect,” she said.
She said her case was similar to that of several other families whose loved ones were killed at the site.
“Many people have died, others have been left with permanent scars and others are widows like me and orphans like my son because of the accidents at the same place. Something needs to be done to improve the stretch,” she said.
The latest accident occurred on Saturday night last week after a bus carrying mourners from a funeral in Mghambonyi area of Wundanyi sub-county hit a roadside wall and plunged into a ditch. The bus was carrying 34 passengers on its way back to Mombasa. A total of 12 people died in the accident, while others are being treated, some in critical condition.
A survivor, Baraka Mrabu, said the driver lost control of the bus and it plunged down the steep slope, rolling several times and killing 10 people on the spot.
Mr Mrabu lost three siblings in the incident, which also robbed him of his friends.
“The driver lost control as he was going down the steep road. He had assured me that he was an experienced driver, but the moment I realised that the brakes had failed, I knew we were going to fall into the ditch,” he said.
In November last year, four people died on the spot after a Memon Secondary School bus overturned at the black spot. The bus was carrying mourners returning to Mombasa from a funeral at Ngerenyi in Wundanyi. The mourners were teachers at the school and had attended the funeral of a colleague.
Part of the Josa stretch that has become a blackspot on the Wundanyi-Mwatate highway in Taita Taveta County. Drivers who are not familiar with the road find it difficult to drive down the steep road and to properly negotiate the meandering corners.
In 2019, a bus belonging to Taita Taveta University overturned at the same spot, killing one student. More than 20 students were injured in the accident.
In January 2018, a bus belonging to the Royal Service Company rolled at the same spot, killing two people and injuring 26 others. The passengers were also mourners attending a funeral at Mghambonyi in Wundanyi.
In the same year, a similar tragedy befell passengers on a matatu from Wundanyi to Voi, injuring nine people.
Residents and community leaders called for the road, which is under the Kenya National Highways Authority (Kenha), to be reconstructed.
Mwatate sub-county police commander Morris Okul has advised motorists to strictly follow road signs as the government seeks a permanent solution to the carnage on the stretch.
Mr Okul described the stretch as a killer spot and urged motorists to be cautious to avoid veering off the sloppy sharp bends.
Local leaders led by Governor Andrew Mwadime attributed the spate of accidents on the stretch to lack of familiarity by drivers who are new to the road and the sloppy sharp bends on the stretch.
“We will engage Kenha to see what can be done to ensure that no more lives are lost on this stretch,” he said.
The numerous accidents often overwhelm the Mwatate sub-county hospital and the Moi County Referral Hospital in Voi, where survivors are rushed for treatment. In Saturday night’s accident, patients in critical condition were unable to get the care they needed due to the lack of a trauma centre. BY DAILY NATION