Solai tragedy was an act of God, witness tells court

KDF and NYS officers search for the victims of the Patel Dam tragedy in Solai, Nakuru county, on May 12, 2018. [File, Standard] 

A hydrogeologist consultant told Nakuru Law Courts that the Solai Dam tragedy was an unavoidable natural phenomenon.

Mwang’ong’o Bwacharo, a witness during the defence hearing before Justice Julius Nangea, claimed that the Solai Dam tragedy was an act of God.

The Solai dam tragedy claimed the lives of over 40 people on May 9, 2018, leaving some with injuries.

A total of 248 victims had sued Perry Mansukh, Patel Coffee Estate, Kensalt Limited, and the state for compensation for damage caused to their health, injuries, property, environment, and loss of life.

Bwacharo claimed that Kensalt Limited had contacted him as a consultant on the cause of the Mlimet Dam to identify what triggered the dam failure.

“My scope was to investigate what caused the damage that happened at the coffee farm at Solai. I visited the scene and spent the whole week assessing and seeing the damage in August 2022,” he explained.

He stated that he carried out a geotechnical survey to find the formation of the region by using a terrameter and GPS to locate where the dam was.

Using satellite imagery of 2000, 2010, 2014, and 2018, Bwacharo is said to have analysed patterns of the use and cover and conducted an analysis of the time series area coverage.

 In his findings, he said that the geological morphology of the area is of tertiary formation, which is unconsolidated and weathered.

He claimed that the dam burst due to a landslide.

“The dam area is drained by small streams as the main source of water to the dam; some of this water infiltrates into the underground due to the unconsolidated rock materials of high porosity index,” he added.

  The consultant alluded that the dam failure was caused by a landslide, which was triggered by heavy rainfall between May 6 and 9, 2018, leaving a heavy scar.

The debris from the landslide comprises huge boulders, loose materials, and runoff water from the slopes that hit a part of the dam, damaging the embankment on the eastern part.

“The geotechnical assessment, observation, and data analysis results indicate that the Mlimet Dam was due to the natural phenomena, which were and still are beyond human control,” he said.

 The natural phenomena he explained were a landslide that caused the disaster due to the rainfall.

The case will be further heard on February 11, 2026.