Three wedding guests killed in a road accident in Tharaka Nithi

A guard rail tore through Ruiri Girls High School bus in the early morning crash.

Photo credit: Alex Njeru | Nation Media Group

Three people died and several others were injured in a road crash in Njuri, Tharaka Nithi on the Meru-Nairobi Highway early Saturday.

A bus belonging to Ruiri Girl's High School was ferrying members of Thau Methodist Church from Tigania West to a wedding in Karen, Nairobi when the accident happened at around 5am.

Confirming the accident, Tharaka Nithi County Disaster Manager Alex Mugambi said four people who were trapped in the wreckage were removed midmorning.

The church members were travelling to a wedding in Karen when the accident happened. 

Photo credit: Alex Njeru | Nation Media Group

Meru South police boss Eunia Onyancha said survivors were taken to Chuka County Referral Hospital.

"We have lost two women and a man, 36 people were injured, eight of them in critical condition,” said Ms Onyancha.

Thau church chairman Joseph Limuli said the driver lost control of the bus after one of its tyres burst.

He said they had left the village after 2am.

"We are worried that the four who are trapped may be dead now because they are currently not responding to calls like before," said Mr Limuli. 

Correction: An earlier version of this story cited an incorrect figure for the number of fatalities in the crash.