Nairobi \u00e2\u20ac\u201d A 47-year-old telecommunications engineer died on Tuesday night in a freak accident when his car rammed an elephant at Nkunga forest on the Meru-Nanyuki road.<\/p>\n
Mr Dalton Mwachenga, who was travelling from Uganda, hit the elephant that then fell on his car.<\/p>\n
Imenti North police boss Joshua Lutukai said the incident occurred around 1am.<\/p>\n
Highway officers, who were manning a roadblock near the forest, rushed to the scene but could not rescue the man as there was a herd of about 50 elephants hovering around the scene.<\/p>\n
Mr Lutukai said there were many accidents in the area because of overgrown shrubs that reduced visibility on the 6km stretch.<\/p>\n
He also said that there were no warning signs for motorists that they were driving through a forest.<\/p>\n
„The accident could have been avoided if the road had markings indicating it is passing through a forested area,“ he said.<\/p>\n
Mr Lutukai said his department would write to the Ministry of Roads to have the necessary markings put up.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, another car overturned as its driver evaded an elephant crossing the road.<\/p>\n
Mr Lutukai said the vehicle occupants were unhurt. Isiolo Kenya Wildlife Service warden Thomas Mailu blamed the accidents on speeding drivers.<\/p>\n
„It is clear the vehicle was speeding. It’s rare to see an elephant die after being knocked down,“ he said and asked drivers to be careful while passing through the forest.<\/p>\n
Back to their usual habitat<\/strong><\/p>\n Mr Mailu said the forest had some 300 elephants but the number could rise to more than 500 due to migration from other areas within Mt Kenya region.<\/p>\n He said the accident could have been caused by elephants going back to their usual habitat following the ongoing rains.<\/p>\n „When it rains, migratory elephants go back to their habitats and sometimes move in large groups,“ the game warden said.<\/p>\n