A helicopter carrying six people, including Environment Principal Secretary Festus K. Ng’eno, crashed at Kericho Golf Club on Monday afternoon amid heavy rains in Kericho County, leaving several occupants injured.
Kericho County Police Commander Kivindu Kilonzo confirmed that no deaths had been reported following the incident. He said emergency teams were responding to the situation as authorities worked to establish the circumstances surrounding the crash.
Information obtained leaked.co.ke indicated that Ng’eno was among the passengers aboard the helicopter when it went down shortly after takeoff. The aircraft, which bears the registration number 5Y-FSK, reportedly had six people on board at the time of the incident.Witnesses said the helicopter had barely gained altitude when it suddenly lost height and crashed back to the ground.
The incident occurred during a period of heavy rainfall in the area, although investigators are yet to establish the exact cause of the accident.
Following the crash, rescue teams moved quickly to remove the occupants from the wreckage. The injured were then rushed to South Rift Hospital for urgent medical attention.
Details about the nature of their injuries and their current conditions had not been fully established by the time of reporting.Police and emergency personnel remained at the scene as they assessed the situation and gathered information about what had happened.
Kilonzo said further details were expected as investigations progressed.
The crash comes at a time when Kenya has experienced other serious aviation accidents in recent months, drawing attention to the risks faced by aircraft operating under difficult weather conditions.
In August 2026, a helicopter crashed near Mount Ololokwe in Samburu County, killing all seven people on board.
The aircraft, a Eurocopter EC130 B4, was carrying tourists when it struck a rock formation near the summit and burst into flames.
Among those reported to have been on board were high-profile international figures, including Ecuador’s intelligence chief.
The accident claimed the lives of everyone aboard, making it one of the country’s recent deadly aviation incidents.
Another fatal accident occurred in September 2026 in Kajiado West Sub-County, where a light training aircraft operated by the Kenya School of Flying crashed in the Kipeto area.
The accident killed both a student pilot and a flight instructor who were aboard the aircraft. Police reports pointed to poor visibility caused by heavy morning mist as a possible contributing factor in the incident.
Although the circumstances surrounding the Kericho crash remain unclear, the presence of heavy rain at the time has placed weather conditions among the issues investigators are likely to examine.
However, the exact cause cannot be determined until the relevant aviation authorities complete their investigations.
Investigators are expected to assess the aircraft, review the events leading up to the crash and establish whether weather conditions or other technical and operational factors played a role.
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