A security guard who warned colleagues not to board a truck to cross the swollen Kwa Mwei River in Makueni County was killed in a water accident on Friday, but his colleague survived to tell his story.
Samuel Nzomo and Masila Mulongi were on their way home after a night shift in Sultan Hamud township when they entered a swollen river.
They joined dozens of residents who had been stranded on the shore for hours waiting for the waters to recede, most of them hawkers and other small traders heading to neighboring Kasikeu township.
“We had been on the riverbank for more than seven hours when a truck loaded with ballast arrived and offered to help the stranded people across. I wanted to jump in, but my colleague advised us to wait and see. “We held our breath and watched the current flow,” Nzomo said. “There was joy as we crossed the raging sea.” nation Saturday.
“When the second truck came, there was a scramble for space as everyone tried to pass by. We agreed to go home, get some sleep and then go back to work for the night. As I was watching, the truck was washed away. Luckily, I was able to swim to safety and stay in a tree until Kenya Red Cross personnel arrived to help me. Unfortunately, my colleague did not survive,” Nzomo said. nation at the mortuary of Sultan Hamdo sub-county hospital after identifying the body of his colleague, which was recovered on Saturday.
The moment the villagers boarded the unfortunate sandwheel that ended in tragedy.
Mzee Mhlonzi was one of the nine people who drowned.
“We treated and discharged 14 people rescued from the water accident. We received the bodies of six women and three men,” said Jane Mwende, medical director at Sultan Hamud Deputy District Hospital. Makueni Deputy Governor Lucy Muriri said 10 people were still missing when they joined the hospital rescue team. Among them were two children whose mother survived.
They were among those who jumped onto a truck in an attempt to cross the swollen Kwa Mswi River on the Kasikew-Sultan Hamud road. Witnesses said they were becoming impatient as they waited for hours for water levels to recede.
Friday's accident scene. The road between Kasikeu and Sultan Hamud is back to normal.
Photo credit: Pius Maundu | Nation Media Group
Video of the incident showed the truck wading through raging water before being swept away, as dozens of onlookers frantically called for help. The accident sparked a frantic rescue operation by volunteers, the Kenya Red Cross Society and the Makueni Disaster Response Team.
Mr Nzomo and 13 other people, including the truck driver, were pulled alive from the river. Police officials said police were chasing the driver, who fled after being rescued.
Among those who did not survive were fruit seller Joyce Mbite and Jane Sammy, a peddler who traveled from market to market. They were on their way to Kasikeu township.
Mbite's brother, Muteti Mushoki, said: “The last time I spoke to my sister was four hours before the accident. She had just arrived from Nairobi where she had delivered lemons. She warned us not to cross the swollen river. I did,” he said. Nation after identifying the body at the morgue.
Muriri led a team of county government officials to offer condolences to the affected families. She said the Makueni disaster response team and Kenya Red Cross staff had shifted rescue operations to other rivers that discharge water into the Kwa Mswee.
“We are appealing to downstream communities to report any bodies they see floating in the river,” he said. The company announced that it has begun counseling the workers.
