A day and night of searching for a man who drowned in River Athi came to a sad end after he was retrieved lifeless more than a kilometre away from the point he is believed to have slipped while trying to bath.
Richard Kimeu, 24, a farm employee in Kamweani village, Kithimani in Yatta Sub-County accompanied by his friends on Wednesday afternoon went to irrigate a part of his employers’ farm near River Athi and on finishing he decided to take a bath in the river.
Francis Mutuku who is one of his friends and an eye witness stated that he decided to go check on Kimeu who he alleges had taken too long.
“We waited for almost an hour before he came back so I decided to call him but there was no response. When I reached at the river bank only his clothes were there and I knew something had gone wrong so we began the search immediately after we alerted authorities,” said Mutuku
Confirming the incident, Yatta police boss Edward Kipsang Chagat stated that Kithimani police officers and emergency services were alerted about the incident at around 6.30pm on Wednesday and had reported immediately to the scene.
“We have searched for the body for a night together with the area residents and we managed to pull out the body near Mbiuni location today around lunch hour. I thank the area residents together with the area Nyumba Kumi group for their cooperation,” said Kipsang.
However, Kipsang urged the area residents to take caution when approaching near the river as the banks were slippery and deep.
The body of the deceased was taken to Matuu Nursing home hospital mortuary.