Families' agony as they identify remains of Naivasha tragedy loved ones at morgue

A woman who had come to identify the body of a relative is consoled at the Chiromo Mortuary Monday. [PHOTO: WILBERFORCE OKWIRI]

Grief-stricken families and relatives of victims of the Naivasha tragedy yesterday jammed Chiromo Mortuary.

Emotions ran high as some of the relatives of those killed wailed and demanded to be shown the bodies.

The agencies that volunteered to support relatives and friends include St John Ambulance, National Disaster Operations Centre, Amani Counselling and Training Institute and the Red Cross.

The agencies spent the better part of the morning offering psychosocial and counselling support to relatives and friends dealing with traumatising process of identifying the bodies.

Relatives had horrifying stories of how they had learnt of the tragic demise of their loved ones.

NUMBER PLATE

The family of a computer engineer recounted how after trying to contact him for hours, they saw the number plate of his car, which had been burnt beyond recognition. 

Joseph Ngugi, who married in June this year, was travelling from Nyahururu to his home in Ruiru in the course of business when the worst tragedy struck.

Yesterday, his wife could not talk as she was still in shock.

Ngugi’s cousin, Lucy Kiarie, said the deceased was on his way to meet another client in Nairobi before retiring to his Ruiru home.

After unsuccessful calls by his Nairobi client at around 9pm, they decided to contact the Nyahururu businessman for an update, who also told them he had attempted to call Ngugi but could not reach him.

The relatives knew Ngugi was no more after they saw the number plate of his private car among those involved in the Naivasha accident and was burnt beyond repair.

John Mbegu who lost his two nieces in the tragedy recounted how after a family reunion in Nakuru, the cruel hand of death claimed their lives few metres ahead of the car he was driving.

His nieces Mary Njoki, 14, and Eva Wambui, 17, a Form Three student at Kibutha Secondary in Murang’a perished together with their younger brother David Kamau.

His sister-in-law, Violet Kimani and 24-year-old daughter, Juliet Wairimu, survived the grisly accident that threw the nation into mourning.

“We are shocked beyond words and we even don’t know how to mourn their deaths. I was driving behind them when all of a sudden I heard a loud blast and later saw a huge fire. I immediately alighted from my car and sought to know what was going on,” said an emotional Mr Mbegu.

Mbegu, who is a brother to the father of the deceased, Daniel Kimani, a Kenyan living in the United Kingdom, said after a very jovial family gathering in Nakuru, little did he know that such a disaster was to befall his brother’s family.

He said during the tragedy as he joined the rest of the motorists to see what had happened, he found his sister-in-law and her children trapped in their car. However, according to Mbegu, they were lucky as their car was not burnt.

LOVED ONES

The agony was also reflected in other families who lost their loved ones.

The family and close relatives of 28-year-old Francis Muiruri, who also perished in the Naivasha tragedy, could not come to terms with what had happened.

On the fateful day, Muiruri had accompanied his eight cousins to their home in Elburgon as they embarked on a journey to Gatundu for a cousins’ gathering, which they conduct after every four months.

Muiruri’s mother, Julia Ndung’u and his cousin Samuel Mundia narrated how by sheer bad luck he became a victim of the tragedy.