Kirehe- A backspot in Cyunuzi on the Rusumo-Kigali highway is the reason for a spate of recent fatal road accidents in the area, residents say.

Apart from last weekend’s accident that claimed four lives and injured several others, a sharp turn on the Cyunuzi area has been identified as a blackspot and residents want the road relocated.

"A recent accident killed four women selling pineapples on the roadside…so, in addition, to shifting the road, the vendors too, should be relocated a bit far from the road,” said Claude Ndahayo, a resiodent.

Trailer and petrol tanker accidents along the highway are common, Ndahayo pointed out.

Noting that several fatal accidents have been recorded at the particular spot over the years, he appealed to the government to urgently address the matter.

Alvera Mukamuriza, 40, a vendor at the scene of the recent accident said that either relocating vendors or readjusting the sharp corner would save the lives of residents and drivers.

"We won’t complain if vendors are relocated, but unless the corner is readjusted, accidents will not cease,” she said.

Kirehe district Mayor, Protais Murayira reiterated the need to address the blackspot.

He said that authorities were in consultations to seek a solution, but warned traders and bystanders to always keep a safe distance from the road.

"The accidents at the black spot are exacerbated by vendors, who don’t keep a safe distance from the highway,” he said.

"A solution however, must be carefully thought about although it involves a lot of technicalities”.

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