NAIROBI, Kenya—A light aircraft crashed Friday in Kenya's coastal Malindi County, killing three persons on the ground, according to a local police officer.
According to Sub-County Police Commander LuckyJoski Mudavadi, one of the three victims was a motorbike taxi driver killed when the plane crashed near the hamlet of Kwachocha on the Malindi-Mombasa route and erupted into flames.
Two other people, a motorbike rider and a female passenger, were killed when fragments of the plane's detached wings and tail struck them as it crashed into a building.
A pilot and two students on board were treated for injuries received when they leaped out of the plane before it crashed. Police were looking into the cause of the crash.
The Kwachocha neighborhood is next to Malindi Airport, and its inhabitants are suing the government over plans to expand the airport before land compensation claims are resolved.
Rashid Odhiambo, a local county assembly politician, told media that the disaster underlines the need of enforcing safety measures surrounding the airport.
“Those involved in the airport management should keep ensuring safety around the airport and not just concentrate on inside the airport,” he said.
