Bodies of traders who drowned in Masinga Dam retrieved

The bodies of three tomato traders who drowned as they were crossing Masinga Dam in Embu County have been retrieved.

The bodies were traced and removed on Sunday morning following a three-day search by police, divers and residents.

According to Riakanau Location Chief Kimeu Musyimi, the bodies were taken to Embu Referral Hospital mortuary.

"We have managed to recover all the bodies of the victims and I want to thank the rescue teams for a job well done," he told journalists.

One of the dead traders has been identified as Alex Njogu, 23, who hailed from Ciagini village in the neighbouring Kirinyaga County.

A relative, Winnie Kamau, said they camped at the dam for three days waiting for Mr Njogu's body to be recovered.

FAMILY RELIEVED

"We are happy because finally the body of our son has been traced. We shall start making funeral arrangements," she added.

The three traders went missing after the canoe they were using to cross the crocodile-infested Masinga Dam in Embu capsized on Thursday night.

Nine others, among them two women, were rescued.

The 12 traders were returning home after buying tomatoes from Machakos for sale when tragedy struck.

The chief said fishermen quickly alerted divers who were able to save some of the traders from drowning.

The chief explained that two of the dead traders were from Matungulu village in Thika and a third one was from Kirinyaga.

The administrator said the traders normally buy tomatoes in Machakos and transport them to Thika and Nairobi for sale.

He advised the traders to be careful when crossing the dam especially at night.