Two drown in a dam in Moiben as rescue mission turns tragic

Members of the public at the scene where two people drowned in a dam in Moiben, Uasin Gishu County on June 18, 2019. PHOTO | EDITH CHEPNGENO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

By  EDITH CHEPNGENO

What you need to know:

  • A number of residents rushed to the scene after the rescued boy screamed for help.
  • One of the residents, identified as Elijah, also drowned after jumping into the dam to rescue the drowning pupil.
  • Ms Ladona Kiprop called on the county government to put a fence around the dam.

A rescue mission turned tragic on Tuesday evening after two people drowned in a dam in Tugen Estate, Moiben Constituency in Uasin Gishu County.

A Class Eight pupil at Chepngochoch Primary School drowned soon after rescuing his younger brother from drowning in the dam.

The two had been swimming in the swollen dam when the younger brother got into the deep end, forcing his older sibling to rush to his rescue.

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However after pulling him out, the rescuer slipped into the water and drowned.

STUCK IN MUD

“The two brothers had been swimming in this dam. In the process, the younger brother was overwhelmed and the older boy jumped in to rescue him but after doing so he slipped back into the water and got stuck in the mud,” said Bernard Tuwei, a resident

A number of residents rushed to the scene after the rescued boy screamed for help.

“After rescuing the younger boy Kipchirchir got stuck in the mud. Screams from the rescued younger boy brought three of us here to the dam and we tried our best rescue his brother,” added Mr Tuwei.

The dam where the two drowned. Residents say water filled after a Chinese contractor who had extracted murram left without filling up the section. PHOTO | EDITH CHEPNGENO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

RESCUER DROWNS

One of the residents, identified as Elijah, also drowned after jumping into the dam to rescue the drowning pupil.

“In the process of rescuing Kipchirchir, one of the three of us by the name Elijah tried to dive to get hold of Kipchirchir but he also drowned. It was now beyond us and we decided to seek for more help from villagers nearby,” narrated Mr Tuwei

Ms Ladona Kiprop, another resident, called on the county government to put a fence around the dam.

She said that the dams in the area are dangerous to the villagers and especially their school-going children who are on half term break at the moment.

“In our neighbourhood, apart from this dam here, there is also another dam which is dangerously open. We are asking the county to help us fence the dams. They are so dangerous to us and especially our children who are on half term break at the moment,” said Ms Kiprop.

ROAD BUILDER

The grieving residents directed their anger at a Chinese contactor who is building the Kapcherop-Moiben-Ainabkoi road whom they accused of abandoning the dam after extracting murram.

"After digging out murram from the pit that now turned into this dam here, they just left it unattended. As you can see, it is not even fenced. We are exposed to danger,” said Mr Tuwei

They expressed their frustrations on the careless way the pits that eventually turn into deep dams are managed by road contractors.

It took the efforts of the locals, Uasin Gishu County disaster management department, police and divers from Cheploch in Elgeyo-Market County to retrieve the two bodies.

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