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The Loch Ness Monster-SITES AND PLACES-True Stories-Qwiki.

Harrowing Near Death Experience, NDE, On A Kampala Bound Akamba Bus.

On Monday the 22nd Day of November 2010 the year of our Lord. I had the misshappenstance of boarding a Kampala bound Akamba Bus Via Busia, KBA **** Route 027 that departed from Nairobi  one hour after the time indicated on their receipt's departure time.

I Digress, the fellows actually booked me onto their 8.00 PM Bus at 8.47 PM, I highly suspect that at the speed at which these buses are usually driven, that bus was way past Mau Summit, Molo a full 216 Kms (135 Miles) due Northwest of Nairobi. So not only are the Ticket masters adept at reversing time they also possess a super gadget for time reversal, they are adept students of the Time Dilation Theory.

For Real God Is The Best.

The Bus left Nairobi at 10:39 PM precisely 1hour and 9 minutes after the declared departure time,  so as the good student that I am of traffic rules as enshrined in the Traffic Act of the Laws of the Republic of Kenya, I made to buckle my seat belts so that in the event that the mechanical contraption was to possess a mechanical mind of its own and drive us to the ground, the harness would restrain me from sustaining grievous bodily harm to my person.

But alas much to my chagrin this relatively new bus had no functioning seatbelts or at least my seat, seat number 31, positioned strategically directly above the left rear wheels had been deliberately mutilated and relieved of this critical safety superstructure. At this point in time I had resigned myself to whichever fate awaited me, because quite clearly the minions that dot the underworld, i.e the fallen spirits seemed to have a diabolical event scheduled for me.

From Limuru my very sensitive nostrils began to detect the smell of burning rubber which seemed to intensify with the passage of time. I was compelled to raise the issue with the rude co-driver of the Bus, who had given me a very rude answer in Nairobi when I had politely inquired of him to confirm to me whether that KBA**** was indeed the Bus bound for Kampala, he had answered me something to this effect, "Kwani unafikiria ni gani?" (English Translation: "Idiot, so which one did you think it was you f*"£c*ing f*$l?) .

He informed me that I would rather concentrate on sleeping and such other journey pleasures as I await arrival to my destination. He informed me that,being as it were I was not schooled in any way, on the Tyre mechanics of a Bus I had no locus to comment on the sights, sounds and smells of his Bus.My mind started being populated enormously and to quite a high degree by images as the following below:

I engaged in a quick and meaningful conversion with the creator of the heavens and the earth to spare me in the event the bus was to obey the Law of Entropy, Specifically the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics precursor to the Chaos theory, which simply states for the non-technical individual that:

"Anything that can go wrong, must go wrong" better known as Murphy's Law.  

My worst nightmare was rapidly coming to fruition as we approached Kobura a notorious black-spot at Ahero along the Kisumu-Nairobi highway a place I have blogged about before here. The inevitable happened the tyre burst with the staccato sound of gunfire. My immediate neighbours who I could have sworn were Muslims earnestly beseeched Yeshiva bin Nazariya to have mercy on their souls (interestingly they did not call upon Mohammed) .

The driver drove the remaining 40 kilometres quite oblivious of what had happened and showing a crass indeference to the feelings of the hapless passengers. Being as it were I have never considered myself a hapless passenger, bystander or any other "enger" I raised the issue with the driver when we got to Kisumu as they went about changing the burst tyre and the fellow quite charecteristically hurled a few insults in my direction and basically denied that the event ever took place instead accusing my faculty of imagination as working in overdrive.

We continued travelling to the frontier Town at hypersonic speed and when we got to the Busia Immigration desk and I was asked by the Immigration officer if I had anything to declare I promptly declared to him which I also do here declare to all and sundry, "Never Travel By Akamba Bus". Lousy service through and through I intend to give this feedback to the Akamba Bus officials .

Four Feared Dead, Six Injured as Nakumatt Downtown Supermarket Burns.

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Firefighters get down to work at the Nakumatt Downtown Supermarket on Wednesday

More than four people were feared dead, while six others were injured when a supermarket in Nairobi’s city centre caught fire.

The early afternoon fire broke out at Nakumatt Downtown on Kimathi Street, causing customers to rush out through the nearest entrance. There were fears that some workers and customers may have been trapped in the building. The early inferno, which workers claimed was triggered by an electric fault, could not at first be contained by the combined efforts from the City Council, Kenya Army, Kenya Airports Authority and private company G4S firefighters.

The inferno engulfed the entire building. Explosions from gas cylinders rent the air from 2.45pm and kept exploding, re-igniting blazes that had been quelled.

Wailing sirens punctuated the city’s peace and calm into the early evening as a police chopper kept aerial surveillance to ensure the fire did not spread to other buildings.

The fire had not been contained by the time we went to press.

Internal Security minister George Saitoti, who arrived at the scene immediately, said fire engines ran out of water and reinforcements had to be called.

Nairobi Metropolitan Development Minister Mutula Kilonzo and Police Commissioner Hussein Ali also went to the scene.

Outside the burning building, a man who said he works for the supermarket claimed some people had been trapped inside.
"I have left a colleague (name withheld)," he said hysterically. "A worker has fainted up there after inhaling the smoke. Please go and get him."


Missing Husband

But before they could explain where the said victims were, an explosion was heard inside, forcing the rescuers and firefighters to abandon their work.

At around 8.30pm, a woman was crying at the scene, saying her husband, with whom she had gone into the supermarket, was still missing.


She said he was in a different aisle and when the fire broke out, she dashed out. Efforts to reach her husband on his mobile phone were fruitless as it was off.

A policeman clears the crowd from the scene. [PHOTO: COLLINS KWEYU/STANDARD]

The supermarket’s Operations Director Thiagarajan Ramamurthy sent a statement to newsrooms saying all the staff and customers who were in the shop had been evacuated.

Later, the supermarket management said four workers were missing after a headcount at Jeevanjee Gardens where they met after the incident.

Spokesman Antony Ng’ang’a said there were 103 workers who were supposed to be on duty, but a headcount found only 99. "We are still trying to locate the whereabouts of the four," he told The Standard on the phone.

Treated For Shock

Kenya National Hospital Clinical Services deputy director Charles Kabetu confirmed that one Nakumatt employee and six by-standers had been taken there where they was being treated for shock, smoke inhalation and fractures.
There were no independent confirmations whether any customers were trapped inside although one witness said she had seen a woman with a child near where there was an initial explosion that caused the fire.

Police Commissioner Ali said they could not determine the number of the casualties until a headcount was concluded.

Prof Saitoti, too, said it was too early to know if there were any casualties. Witnesses said the inferno started from the supermarket when a mild explosion was heard.

"There had been a blackout and when power resumed, we heard an explosion from the staircase. Then there was smoke," said a worker.

But Ali said he had not yet established what caused the fire and asked for time to investigate.
However, some officers said a violation of by-laws on public safety and unpreparedness by the Nairobi Fire Brigade may be to blame.

Nairobi City Council Emergency Medical Technician Charles Choi said his team could not access the premises as a wall had sealed the fire exit.

The chairman of the Architectural Association of Kenya and Building Inspection Committee, under the Ministry of Works, Mr Wachira Njuguna, said he did not see any fire door when he visited the supermarket.
Njuguna further said it was against city by-laws to store gas cylinders in an enclosed space. But City Council Director of Planning Peter Kibinda said there were exemptions to the rule if one had a fire certificate of compliance and fire extinguishers.

Nakumatt could not be reached for comment on the wall by the time we went to Press.
City Council Acting Chief Fire Officer Brian Chunguli blamed the public for blocking his team. "We got the running call informing us of the fire at 3.05pm and in five minutes, we were at the scene," he said.
"The supermarket stores goods like gas cylinders, mattresses and materials of plastic nature that naturally fuel the fire," he added.
By Standard Team







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Zeru Zeru-Albinos Are Being "Finished" In Tanzania.

Crackdown on witchdoctors after albinos killed to harvest body parts.

                                          Albino In A Traditional Ritual, Mwanza Tanzania.

ALAMY

Albinos are being killed to make 'medicines'

Known as the "Zeru Zeru", or ghosts, Tanzania's albinos have put up with the name-calling and the stigmatisation of being "black in a white skin" for years. The unluckier ones have even been kicked out of their home by relatives who see their condition as a curse on the whole family. Now albinos in the east African nation face an altogether more deadly threat. They have become the favoured prey of traditional healers, who kill them to harvest their body parts for get-rich-quick concoctions.

In the most gruesome of a spate of albino murders in the north-west region around Lake Victoria, one corpse was exhumed with all its limbs cut off. Others have been found minus tongues, genitals or breasts.

"In the past, albinos have been killed after being accused of witchcraft but this is a new phenomenon. This time they are being targeted by the witchdoctors themselves," said Simeon Mesaki, a sociologist at the University of Dar es Salaam.

The problem has reached such proportions that Tanzania's President, Jakaya Kikwete, used his monthly television address to announce a crackdown on the traditional healers as well as plans to register albinos to improve their safety. "These killings are shameful and distressing to our society," said Mr Kikwete in his Wednesday night speech to the nation. "I am told that people kill albinos and chop their body parts, including fingers, believing they can get rich."

Many of the people using the potions made from sacrificed albinos are thought to be miners and fishermen, hoping for extra lucrative mineral finds or bumper fish catches.

According to the Tanzanian government, 19 albino people have been killed in the past year, with another two missing presumed dead. However, disability campaigners say the real number of victims could be as high as 50, given that many deaths do not get reported in a country where albinism is still seen as something to hide or where family members may even be complicit in the killings.

"Parents exchange their albino children for money so there's a poverty connection," explained Theodore Mwalongo, the head of the Tanzanian arm of Action on Disability and Development.

The Tanzania Albino Society, which in the past has accused the government of turning a blind eye to the killings, welcomed the President's words, but stressed that they must be backed up with action.

"The key will be whether the message gets down to local authorities so that there will real changes on the ground," said Samuel Mluge, its chairman. "We need to get rid of the corruption, and make sure that those behind the witchcraft are identified and brought to justice, and cannot buy themselves immunity."

Out of a population of 39 million, there are about 270,000 people in Tanzania who suffer from albinism – which stops them producing pigment in their skin, hair and eyes. This means that instead of having dark skin and black hair, they are blond with pinkish complexions.

Less than a century ago, most albinos born in Tanzania would have been killed at birth – viewed as proof of a woman's adultery with a European man. Because the gene for albinism is recessive, parents can both carry it and pass it on to their child, even if they look "normal". Yet even today, albinos are often called "mzungu" – the name given to the colonial white man – and many people do not understand that it is a genetic condition, not a curse.

Organisations such as the Tanzania Albino Society and Action on Disability and Development are trying to educate the population, helping to train healthcare workers and staging workshops for teachers and parents to encourage them to make sure albino children wear long-sleeved clothing and hats to protect them from the sun.

Additional Reports By Claire Soares.

HighWay Of Death.

Thursday, January 8, 1998 Published at 12:42 GMT

Despatches

Photo Courtesy Of Xinhua  News
Nairobi

Fifty-four people have been killed in Kenya when a bus skidded off a road and plunged into a river. The accident happened in the region of Meru, in the centre of the country. According to official radio, the road conditions had been made treacherous in the area because of heavy rain. The bus was reportedly owned by the local subsidiary of the British company Stagecoach. From Nairobi, our East Africa correspondent, Cathy Jenkins, reports:

The bus was on route from the central town of Meru to Nairobi when it apparently skidded on a steep section of the road and plunged into the river Nithi. Initial reports put the death toll at 30 but this has risen to 54, with many of the victims trapped inside the bus.

Official radio had said that road conditions in the area were treacherous because of recent bad weather. The El Nino effect in Kenya has caused torrential rains to continue well past the wet season.

But road conditions in Kenya are notoriously bad. Years of neglect have left roads in many areas pot-holed and in some places all but washed away.

And the accident rate due to bad driving is high. Buses are often badly maintained and loaded well over the limit with passengers and goods.
Source Cathy Jenkins

Ghosts Of Kobura

The Ghosts Of Kore-Kobura

Across the country in Nyando District, stories of ghosts and haunted places abound, especially in Kore and Kobura.

Kobura location borders the partly stalled Ahero Rice Irrigation Scheme on the Kisumu-Nairobi highway. A four-kilometre stretch on the Ahero-Lela road is widely believed to be haunted by ghosts. On this stretch, many grisly road accidents have been witnessed between Korowe trading centre and Lela Secondary School.

A resident of the area, Mark Ojwang’ Nyabange, says the accident jinx was caused by the deaths of an old woman and a child who were run over by a vehicle many years ago. The residents believe the large number of accidents are caused by the dead woman’s ghost, which keeps coming back to confuse motorists.

Villagers who go to assist accident victims claim to have been told by the drivers that they had seen a ghostly old lady cross the highway driving a herd of cattle just before the accident. Elsewhere, about two kilometres from the Nairobi highway towards Kore village, a ghost is said to haunt a bridge. It is claimed that many residents of the area, including a young man known as Joseph Omondi, have fallen victim to the ghost at the bridge.

Omondi recalls one night sometime back when he set out at night from his home near K’otieno Odongo village to visit his relatives in Kore. An architecture student at a Nairobi-based college, Omondi says when he approached the bridge he met an old woman clad in a buibui who requested for assistance.

"She pleaded for help to cross the bridge and I obliged, but by the time I crossed the bridge she had vanished," he said.

Villagers say the ghost often greets people in Dholuo: "Amosi swaya! Amosi swaya! (Warm greetings! Warm greetings!)." Additional sources Here