Woman in pain as baby's body stuck in well for 11 days

Lillian Ndanu (right) is consoled by a friend, Lillian Njeri. [Omondi Onyango, Standard]

For the last 11 days, Lilian Ndanu has been sitting next to a borehole hoping for a miracle.

On Christmas Eve, her one-year-and-eight-month-old boy fell into the borehole that is being constructed in Mtopanga, Mombasa.

Ms Ndanu had hoped that Fadhili Ramadhan would be rescued. But that hope faded away after a two-day rescue mission bore no fruit despite efforts from the Mombasa County fire brigade.

She then prepared herself for the worst and hoped the body would be retrieved. But, again, that hope has turned into despair.

Yesterday, a crestfallen Ndanu waited as rescuers, who included masons and firemen, braved humid weather to try get the body out of the pit.

"It is taking too long. I know my boy is no more there. I pray that they recover the body so that we can bury him," said Ndanu, who hails from Miambani in Kitui County.

Ndanu and her son had visited friends in Mtwapa, Kilifi, to celebrate Christmas.

"This is difficult for us all. Neighbours have joined hands and we work with masons and officers from the fire brigade to dig around the construction site in a bid to get the body out," said Benard Opondo, whose wife is a Ndanu's friend.

Kisauni Division Fire Officer Salim Mohamed, who was on duty leading the operation yesterday, said soft soil around the borehole had made the digging tricky.

"We have devised way of taking the rescuers deep into the borehole using slings as the search goes on. We are sure of a breakthrough in the recovery of the body," he said.

He said his department encountered a similar incident last year where a man fell into a deep hole, and his body retrieved after 18 days.
 
Neighbours complained that the construction site was not secured despite the fact that it's in a residential area.

"It's not the time to point accusing fingers. What is important is for us to ensure that the body is recovered and given a decent burial before we make a follow-up on whether there was any negligence on the part of the contractor," said Francis Gregory, a resident.