Search mission at Solai called off as Patel presents self

The search mission for the Solai dam tragedy that killed at least 47 and displaced 500 families has officially been called off amid complains over compensation.

Rift Valley Regional Coordinator Mongo Chimwaga said the search was called off on Thursday evening after all people reported missing were accounted for.

The search was conducted by a multi-agency team comprising personnel from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), Kenya Red Cross Society, National Youth Service (NYS) and the police.

The case of six-year-old Mary Wambui, who is yet to be buried after an elderly man claiming to be her grandfather emerged, is yet to be determined.

Teresia Njeri, a woman claiming to be the girl’s mother, said she does not know the old man. “The government should help me solve this dispute. I need peace of mind. I do not know who the said man is,” Njeri said at the morgue.

Samples have been sent to laboratories in Nairobi for DNA examination as police pursue the man who has since gone missing.

Yesterday, residents of Nyakinywa and Energy villages, the most affected by the tragedy, asked the government to also search for more bodies under debris of houses and heaps of soil swept downstream by the raging floods.

Locals further took issue with compensation, saying they have information that tenants are to be paid Sh30,000 while landlords will receive Sh50,000. They said, if true, the money was too little to compensate for their loses.

“It is wrong for the government to call off the search when we have debris all over,” said Rober Opondo, a resident.

But Chimwaga dismissed the claim, saying the compensation committee is compiling a list of all affected families.

“I do not know where that information came from. The list of beneficiaries is being verified and will be sent to Nairobi for compensation procedure,” said Chimwaga.

He said an investigation into the tragedy is ongoing.

Meanwhile, a detective told Saturday Standard that Mansukh Patel, owner of the dam, had written a statement with the police in Nairobi.

Patel presented himself to the police on Thursday after jetting into the county on Tuesday.