President William Ruto has announced that the deadly Enziu bridge in Kitui town will be completed by September after years of stalling.

🇰🇪 Breaking It Down

While speaking during a church service at ACK St. Martin’s Cathedral in Kitui County on July 12, the president committed Ksh600 million to complete the multimillion-shilling project.

“There is this deadly bridge over here that has caused a lot of problems in Kitui County, Enziu Bridge. My administration has pledged Ksh600 million for its completion.” Stated President Ruto.

He stated that delays in the completion dates are due to logistical challenges, including the importation of some key construction materials from contractors outside the country, but that the entire bridge has largely been completed.

📌 What You Need to Know

“We have done everything within our power to see to it that the bridge is complete in the next one to one and a half months, a delay that was a result of key logistical challenges for some materials for the project.” On December 4, 2021, tragedy struck Kitui County when a school bus carrying a Catholic church choir and wedding guests plunged into the flooded Enziu River, killing 32 people, among them several members of a single family.

The 51-seater bus, owned by St. Joseph Seminary in Mwingi, was ferrying the Good Shepherd Catholic Parish choir to a wedding in Nuu when it attempted to cross a submerged bridge and was swept away by raging floodwaters.

The reconstruction of the Enziu River Bridge has dragged on since the incident, with the Ministry of Roads and Transport initially pledging a quick fix costing up to Ksh500 million and a target completion date of December 2022.  In April 2022, KeRRA formally awarded the contract to Kiu Construction Limited, a Kenyan construction company, at roughly Ksh700 million, with groundwork starting that June, but progress soon collapsed.

By late 2022, only one concrete pillar stood, just 10 per cent complete, and work nearly stopped through 2023 and 2024 amid budget shortfalls and payment disputes.

A brief 2025 revival under Deputy President Kithure Kindiki stalled again after President Ruto's February 2026 deadline was missed.

Relief came in April 2026, when the Treasury released Ksh150 million, clearing arrears and shifting work into the decking phase.

📰 Source: Kenyans.co.ke