Blackout blamed in woman's death

Woman bleeds to death at Meru Level 5 as power outage cripples theatre services.

A woman died at a Meru hospital yesterday after the medical staff failed to attend to her "due to a power blackout".

Maria Gituamikwa, 67, who had been involved in an accident, is said to have bled to death as she could not be taken to theatre.

She had suffered serious injuries on her leg after a tractor hit a motorcycle she was riding on.

The rider and a pedestrian sustained soft tissue injuries in the accident on Tuesday.

Gituamikwa's family said the life of their mother could have been saved if the hospital had an alternative source of power, like a standby generator.

Her daughters Lydia Kinya and Judy Ntinyari said their mother was is pain when they arrived at the hospital. 

"We blame the Government for our mother's death. How can a major hospital like this lack a standby generator?" said Ms Kinya.

Ntinyari said: "She died because they did not take her to theatre on time. She lost a lot of blood."

Kanana Kimonye, the County's Chief Officer for Health, yesterday denied claims that several patients had died at the hospital owing to power blackout.

"Reports that people died are false. Also, those claiming a patient was denied theatre services are lying," said Ms Kimonye.

Kenya Power had, on May 7, announced a power outage in Meru Town, Meru Prison and adjacent areas.