Five die after boat capsizes in River Nzoia while on mission to retrieve colleague who drowned

Five people drowned in River Nzoia, Siaya County on Saturday afternoon, May 16, after a motor boat they were in capsized.

The boat, which was carrying nine people, had been hired to help in retrieving a colleague who drowned last week.

Siaya Deputy County Commissioner Joseph Sawe, who confirmed the incident, said that a mission had been launched to search who the bodies of those who drowned.

Those who drowned were identified as, Bernard Masawa, George Oduor Audi, Joseph Omondi Ochieng George Ojwang Orecho and Kennedy Odhiambo Ojude.

The other four who survived, reportedly swam and got help from residents. One of them is in critical condition while the other three are stable.

According to the Siaya County Commissioner, while speaking to K24, said that the occupants aged between 20 and 30 years, had travelled a distance of 49 kilometres.

River Nzoia reportedly burst due to the ongoing heavy rains in the country that have claimed the lives of more than 237 Kenyans and over 5,000 families displaced in the county alone.

Devolution CS Eugene Wamalwa during a press briefing, stated that the number of Kenyans who were affected by the floods significantly rose from 122,00 to 161,000.

The CS stated that the most affected area was the Lake Victoria with over 44,000 thousand people displaced in Bundalangi and 66,000 in Nyando constituency.