Fuel crisis abates in Nairobi, parts of the country
A fuel tanker offloading fuel at the Total Energies petrol station along Kimathi Street in Nairobi.
Motorists in Nairobi are no longer queuing for hours for fuel after some filling stations restocked their supplies Thursday.
Operations in the city centre had returned to near normal, with fuel readily available.
At a TotalEnergies station on Kimathi Street, attendants said the long queues had eased by Thursday after the station received new supplies.
Others in Nairobi that had fuel were Shell stations opposite GPO and at Odeon cinema. Rubis in Koinange Street also had fuel.
In most parts of Western Kenya, fuel supply was slowly returning to normal Thursday, with major outlets leading the pack.
In Vihiga, only one fuel station in Mago, on the border of Sabatia and Vihiga sub-counties, had the precious commodity by Thursday.
The station was selling a litre of super petrol for Sh162, up from the recommended price of Sh135.
Long queues of boda boda operators and others thronged the station on the Kapsabet-Chavakali road to get the commodity that had dried up at most selling points.
The shortage had affected the transportation of goods and people and other services.
Mr Lemon Luvugu, a boda boda operator, told the Nation he had gone to Chavakali and Mbale in search of fuel in vain.
He operates his business in Mudete township and had to go to Mago after learning that it was the only place that had fuel.
"There are so many of us here. They are only allowing buyers one jerrican of petrol. I have been to Chavakali and Mbale and missed the fuel," he said.
In Homa Bay town, motorists lined up to fuel their cars at Total and Shell petrol stations.
In Siaya and Bondo, long queues of motorists looking for fuel were still the order of the day as the shortage continued to bite.
In Siaya, only three filling stations – Petro, Shell and Rubis – had fuel.
The most affected people were the boda boda operators, who have also increased their fares in order to stay in business.
"Things have improved today. Two days ago we only had one filling station with fuel. At least now we have three filling stations and we are hopeful that we will get fuel," said Sam Okoth, who operates a boda boda in Siaya town.
A fuel attendant at Total Energies petrol station along Kimathi Street in Nairobi.
Most boda boda operators had stopped ferrying passengers to distant destinations, citing the fuel shortage.
"We heard over the radios that the government paid the money needed in order for us to have fuel, but in many parts of Siaya we still don't have the fuel, so we cannot risk ferrying passengers to distant places. We go a maximum of three kilometres," he added.
Other areas away from the town still faced shortages.
Matatu operators have also increased fares from Siaya to different places. Fares from Siaya to Ugunja, for example, shot up from Sh150 to Sh250; to Bondo from Sh100 to Sh200; and to Kisumu from Sh250 to Sh350.
The fuel crisis persisted in most parts of the North Rift region and travellers faced higher fares.
Several fuel stations in Eldoret still had shortages, with just a few having some stock.
Stations such as Kenol, adjacent to the Barngetuny Plaza in the town centre, witnessed long queues of residents carrying jerricans seeking the precious commodity to power their vehicles.
A litre of petrol sold for Sh135 and diesel Sh118 at stations in the town.
“I woke up early in the morning to look for fuel but I am unable to find any in most petrol stations. The government promised that fuel would be available, but we are still struggling to get it,” said Norman Kiplagat, a boda boda operator.
Commuters had to dig deeper into their pockets as the crisis persisted in the region.
For instance, from Eldoret to Kabarnet, matatu operators were charging between Sh600 and Sh700, up from between Sh350 and Sh400.
“This fuel crisis is really hurting us, considering we are living in tough economic times. We appeal to the government to intervene and enable oil dealers to provide cheap fuel,” Elias Komen told the Nation.
The shortage has also persisted in major towns in Baringo County, with the transport sector crippled for the better part of this week.
Sam Korir, a motorist from Kabarnet, said he had travelled to a Shell station in Marigat but ended up waiting for more than four hours to get the limited resource.
"All fuel stations in Kabarnet, including Kenol, Kobil and National Oil, have no fuel. We have incurred high costs driving to Shell in Marigat and queuing for hours only to be told it had run out," he said.
In Bungoma, only Total, Shell and Kobil stations had fuel since Wednesday evening.
Long queues were still reported but security officers were controlling crowds.
Total fuel stations in Webuye and Bungoma towns had sought the help of police to control buyers.
Total stations in Kanduyi, Webuye and Misikhu had fuel and motorists were flocking to them.
The 'small' independent fuel stations across the county's nine constituencies did not have any fuel.
But motorists who spoke to the Nation were optimistic that the crisis would end soon.
"We can now breathe a sigh of relief after three trucks brought in fuel last night. We have been selling to motorists who have been camping here since last night, with some coming from as far away as Mt Elgon," said Mr Brian Wafula, an attendant at a Webuye Total station.
In Turkana County, fuel stations that were operational on Thursday included Pacific, four kilometres from Lodwar on the Lodwar-Kitale highway.
In Lodwar, fuel was being sold at the Kobil and Sagal stations.
Due to congestion at the Kenol and Sagal fuel stations in Lodwar, motorists and boda boda operators were still camping at the Kobil and Shell stations, which remained open with hopes that fuel would be delivered by the end of the day.
In West Pokot County, there were limited stocks at the Shell and Total stations in Makutano, Kapenguria.
Other stations that had some fuel were in Keringet and Kacheliba but it was selling for Sh300 per litre.
Kacheliba Sub-County Referral Hospital Superintendent Dr Solomon Tukei on Thursday morning urged the government to regulate fuel prices.
“Fuel brokers have taken advantage of the situation to hike fuel prices,” Dr Tukei told the Nation.
In Nandi and Bungoma counties, some petrol stations had started receiving fuel, ending the crisis that had grounded economic activities for about two weeks.
By Thursday morning, a Shell station in Kapsabet and Total stations in Kobujoi, Kaptumo and Serem market centres had fuel and motorists were queuing for it.
Tractor and lorry drivers said they had resumed their business after staying away from roads for some time due to the fuel crisis.
Jackline Macharia, Kassim Adinasi, Derick Luvega, George Odiwuor, Stanley Kimuge, Brian Ojamaa, Florah Koech Sammy Lutta, Tom Matoke and Oscar Kakai
