Two police officers killed, 10 others injured in road accident in N. Kenya

Two police officers died while 10 others sustained injuries in a grisly road accident in Garissa County, northern Kenya late Tuesday.

Mandera divisional police commander Ekai Maruk and his police driver were killed when the vehicle in which they were travelling in was involved in accident about 8km from Garissa town.

"Of the ten police officers injured in the incident, eight of them were police officers working in Mandera East, three were civilians who included a mother and her four year old son," Garisa divisional police commander Benjamin Ongombe said on Wednesday.

Ongombe said Maruk died upon arrival at the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi where he had been airlifted for specialized treatment.

Maruk has been at the forefront in fighting insecurity especially terrorism in Mandera County which last year saw more than 60 people killed by Al-Shabaab militants.

According to Enock Matoke, a survivor, the vehicle wobbled on the road before it veered off the road before rolling several times.

"We were travelling back to Mandera from Nairobi. Some of us were from leave while others were on escort," Matoke said.

Speaking at the Garissa County referral hospital, Nursing Officer in Charge Hassan Abdullahi said majority of the police officers sustained head and limb injuries adding that the driver who died on arrival had internal injuries.

Ongombe said that the vehicle tore into two on impact and threw the officers meters away from the scene of the accident. He added that when rescue officers arrived, they found several officers unconscious.

"It is unfortunate that we have lost two of our own in the accident which also left several injured. We only wish the casualties quick recovery," said Ongombe. Endi