Mortuary recalls bodies in mix-up

Njeri Mburu the widow of Stephen mburu holding his funeral programme at Kiambu Level Five Hospital mortuary after his body went missing the facility.The family h come to collect his body for burial. [PHOTO BY KAMAU MAICHUHIE].

A mortuary yesterday recalled six bodies that had been collected for burial when it was discovered that there had been a mix-up

The mistake was noticed when a family that had gone to collect the body of its kin from the Kiambu Level Five Hospital found it missing.

The mortuary officials asked the families of six males whose bodies had been collected to return them.

The family of Stephen Mburu from Ikinu, Githunguri, was unable to find his body when it arrived to collect it for burial.

The family insisted that the mortuary staff produce the body Mr Mburu, which they said had been lying there since he died on August 1.

His widow, Njeri Mburu, said the relatives were shocked when they realised that her husband’s body was not at the mortuary.

She said they had gone to the mortuary on Monday to deliver the coffin and his clothes. They also paid Sh7,000 and were told to return yesterday to collect the body.

Njeri said they did not find Mburu's body in the mortuary.

“When my husband, who had been admitted to the hospital, died we took his body to this mortuary. I was there when his name was written on his face and a tag put around his leg,” said Njeri.

Mburu's family said they would not leave until the body was produced.

The hospital and mortuary staff tried to calm down the family members and friends who had gathered in the compound.

By 2pm, four bodies had been returned to the mortuary, but none of them was Mburu's.

It was later established that Mburu’s body was at Kibugi Funeral Home in Kutus town, Kirinyaga County.

The hospital medical superintendent, Jesse Ngugi, said the body was transferred due to a mix-up.

Dr Ngugi said Mburu’s body was exchanged with that of Jackson Kariuki from Kutus.

Ngugi said Mburu's body would be taken back to Kiambu.

A small mix-up

“There was a small mix-up on the side of the mortician. The problem has, however, now been resolved. Mburu’s body is on the way back," he said.

James Waweru, Mburu's cousin, said family members who went to search the mortuary were distressed to find bodies with no tags lying on the floor.

“There were many bodies without tags on the floor. This complicated our search for Mburu's body. It is difficult to tell how the morticians are able to identify the bodies without any identification