By BONIFACE GIKANDI and CHARLES NGENO
Girl was sleeping in family home when incident occurred while Narok flood victims were buried
A five-year-old girl was buried alive following a landslide in Uithira Andu village in Kigumo District.
Esther Wanjiru Kamande was asleep in the family house when the incident occurred. Murang’a County Governor Mr Mwangi wa Iria was among the people who visited the area to assess the damage.
Wa Iria asked the Provincial Administration to furnish his office with details of individuals residing in landslide prone areas. Hundreds of residents led by area MP Jamleck Kamau visited Lucas Kamande’s homestead of to mourn the his daughter.
Residents said the incident occurred shortly after midnight as heavy rains, accompanied by thunderstorms, pounded the area. Wa Iria said Murang’a, due to its topography, was prone to landslides and called on locals to be on high alert.
“The county commissioner should liaise with chiefs to furnish my office with a list of families living in areas perceived to be prone to landslides,” said the governor.
DIRECTIVES
Kamau urged the public to heed to directives from the Provincial Administration to move to safer grounds. “Such disasters could be averted if locals heed the advice and directives given by chiefs who are on the ground mapping out homes located in hilly areas,” said the lawmaker.
Mr Julius Kamau, a resident, said many people were forced to relocate to neighbouring homes for fear of landslides. In Kahuro District, Kahuro-Githagara road was closed after a bridge linking the two areas collapsed.
Kahuro DC Patrick Muli said the bridge would be assessed before motorists are allowed to use it.
Elsewhere, grief overcame residents of Kotolian village in Narok South District yesterday during the requiem mass for eight victims who were swept away by flash floods last Tuesday. Emotions ran high as the white coffins bearing their remains arrived at Kotolian Catholic Church.
Women wept uncontrollably immediately a coffin bearing the remains of a young child was removed from a vehicle. Local leaders led by Narok County Senator Stephen Ntutu accompanied the bodies from Narok District Hospital mortuary.
Ntutu appealed to residents to be vigilant during this rainy season so as to forestall more disasters.
