LIGHTNING HAS KILLED CLOSE TO TWENTY PEOPLE IN WESTERN KENYA WITHIN TWO MONTHS

By Leo Odera Omolo
 
  Lightning has claimed the lives of two more people in western Kenya bringing
the death toll close  to twenty people killed by thunderbolt within two months
during this unusual short rainy season.
 
  The short rains which came late in November has also caused havoc with lives
of Kenyans by flooding villages and rendering thousands of people homeless,
destroying food crops in the field and sweeping away domesticated animals.
 
  Last Saturday (30-12-2006) Kisumu, a City of more than 1.5 million people was briefly cut off from some part of the country when bridges on the main Kisumu -Nairobi and Kisumu -Miwani roads were washed away by torrential rain waters.  The city could only be reached from Kakamega and Maseno towns.
 
  River Nyamasaria which is only 3km away from the city centre had swollen up submerging the bridge. It forced hundreds of motor vehicles to stop and wait for close to seven hours before they were cleared by the police to proceed after the water had subsided.
 
  Villages in Aneko, Ndhiwa, Wath Ongere and Nyakweri in both North and Central Kadem locations in Nyatike Divison, Migori district were deserted after thousands of families had fled their homes which were submerged in the waters in search of safe shelters in villages located on higher grounds.
 
  This happened after Kuja River burst its banks on both sides flooding an area
which is about four kilometers radius. The raising flood waters destroyed many
houses downstream forcing residents to flee to safety.
 
  A woman and her six months old child were struck dead by lightning in Konoin in Bureti district over the weekend. The incident occurred when Mrs. Jane Mosnik was feeding her baby in their family house during the heavy downpour at about 8 pm.
 
  Five other Kenyans died a week ago after the thunderbolt stroke a church in
which they had taken shelter in Bunyore in Vihiga district. Scores of other people were hurt and had to be rushed to hospitals at Yala and Maseno for
treatment and shock.
 
  Those who died instantly were Benajmain ,Manindo 24,Joseph Mmosi 22 and Ameah Agwanda22.Also struck dead was a Mr.Ebeli 36.
 
  The incident occurred at the Ebikwabula PAG church which is located in
Ebuyangu village in western Bunyore,Vihiga district.
 
  Eye witnesses said a dozen of people had taken shelter in the church. They
included the church choir members who had gone to the church for practicing
songs in readiness for choir's competition scheduled for the middle of this
month. No choir member was hurt in the incident.
 
  Mrs Dorcas Ebeli fainted and broke down after seeing the lifeless body of her
husband who had left their home a few minutes earlier saying that he was rushing to a neighbours house to pick up shs 80/- a debt owed to him. He was to proceed thereafter to a nearby shop to buy a packet of wheat flour for baking mandazis for the family breakfast the next morning. That is the last time he was seen alive.
 
  Two teenage boys narrated to the journalists how the incident occurred.
Obuko,16 and Okubasu, 15 said two of the victims were standing next to them. All of a sudden they saw bright flashes of lights and everything went blank.' We were all blackened out" they said.
 
  Five other survivors' were treated at the nearby Maseno Mission Hospital for
burns and shock and were later discharged.
 
  The church which is built of bricks stood intact except two steel windows
which were damaged. Relatives of the victims pleaded with the police  to allow
them to carry their dead relatives home for burial saying they could not afford
the expensive mortuary and transportation costs
 
  In the case of the three youths, one of them Ameah Agwanda had gone to pay a visit to his two friends ,Manindo and Joseph Mmosi whom they became close
friends with when they met at the Maseno Village Polytechnic. As he was being
escorted back to his home 3 km away, the rains caught up with them and they
decided to go and take shelter in the church where they all died together.
 
  In November,lightning struck and killed two people in Boro Division, Siaya
district. Another cyclist was struck dead in Bungoma district. Two other people
were killed in Trans-Nzoia district. Deaths of three people caused by thunderbolt were also reported in Migori district last month.
 
  Meanwhile three more people drowned as heavy rains continued to  cause chaos in most parts of Western Kenya bringing the death tall caused by flood waters to 12.
 
  Six people had died earlier on in Nothern part of the country while flood water caused death in the coastal district of Kwale last month.
 
  In the same Vihiga district where lightning had struck five people dead last
week two boys aged six and two drowned while crossing Izara River.
 
  A man also died in Ombeyi village, Nyando district when his house submerged in water on Sunday night while he was in deep sleep. Ombeyi a part of Kano plains which is the worst hit by the flood.
 
  The area District commissioner Mr.John Egesa confirmed the death incident
adding that the body of the man only identified as Nganyi had not been traced.
 
  The flood waters also destroyed four classrooms at Achwodho Primary School in Miwani area next to Ombeyi village where a man was reported to have drowned.
 
  By yesterday the rains are believed to have rendered close to 30,000 people
homeless in many parts of Kenya though the worst areas are located in the lower lands in Nyanza and Western provinces.
 
  According to experts, lightning kills victims through cardiac arrest when the
victim heart fails after it struck. Burns are also reported often caused by
objects in contact with skin.
 
  To avoid being struck, Kenyans have been advised by experts that it is
advisable to stay indoor during thunderstorms and to stay away from metallic
objects.
 
  Vihiga and Siaya districts are both standing on the equator and prone to a lot
of thunderstorms during the heavy downpour.
 
  ENDS
  leooderaomolo@yahoo.com  
 
The writer is LUOCOME REPORTER based in Kisumu. We urge all LUOCOME members with pressing issues pertaining to media and press releases to kindly contact him from any where in world. He will assist you to get true picture of your Village Developement.
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