By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI (AA): More than 30 people were killed Saturday night in Kenya’s town of Naivasha – 80 kilometers from the capital Nairobi – after a chemical tanker lost control and burst into flames, the State announced on Sunday.

Shells from charred vehicles could be seen on the busy Nairobi-Naivasha highway as rescuers from the Kenya Red Cross and authorities from the region struggled to put out the fire.

“Last night, as a result of a grisly and unnecessary accident, some 33 people were killed along the Naivasha-Nakuru Road. Scores more people were injured and admitted to hospital,” Manoah Esipisu, State House spokesman said on Sunday.

“The fatalities include 11 officers from the General Service Unit (GSU) who provide VIP protection, including to His Excellency the President.”

Esipisu said that the tanker, which was headed to Uganda from Kenya’s port town of Mombasa, hit 13 vehicles before bursting into flames.

He noted that President Uhuru Kenyatta has learned of the accident and wishes to express his condolences to the families of all the bereaved, including the young families of the gallant officers from the General Service Unit (GSU).

Six people who were rescued from the scene of the grisly accident are recuperating at the Naivasha General hospital.

State House has said that the tanker responsible for the deaths should not have been on that particular road at that hour.

[Kenya Map by UN]