Lake Baringo tragedy: Ill-fated boat was overloaded

The bodies of seven people, among them a local pastor's three children and brother have been retrieved from Lake Baringo following a boat tragedy as it emerged that the ill-fated vessel was overloaded.

They were from the Kabukoki Revival Church in Salabani, Baringo South, whose pastor Jane Kikenyi lost her daughters aged nine, 12 and 14 in the tragedy.

She had all her four children and younger brother on the boat, and only her firstborn, a son, survived the disaster.

One of her daughters was among the 17 initial survivors of the tragedy, but succumbed on Sunday afternoon, minutes after being rescued from the lake.

Bodies of the remaining two daughters and her 17-year-old brother were retrieved alongside others on Monday morning.

It has since emerged that the ill-fated boat was ferrying 23 people against the recommended maximum of 10.

The Sunday afternoon accident happened when a group of 23 - 22 of them aged between nine and 17 - were headed for a youth fellowship at Kokwa Island.

Their vessel capsized between Parmalok and Kokwa Islands.

Bodies of the victims were retrieved on the shores of Kokwa Island on Tuesday morning.

On Monday, the rescue team suspended the search mission at 6:00 pm on the advice of the Kenya Maritime Authority and the Coast Guards, but surveillance at the lake went on throughout the night.

“We resumed at 6:30am Tuesday and all the six bodies were found at Kokwa Island. This brings the number of those who died in the boat tragedy to seven after one other person died on Sunday after being rescued,” said Baringo County Commissioner Stephen Kutwa who has been overseeing the search since Sunday.

“We are in the process of getting the families to go and identify the bodies at the Baringo County Referral Hospital morgue in Kabarnet where they have been moved to. We have taken some of the family members to go and identify them and receive psycho-social support from the Kenya Red Cross team,” he stated.

The county chief said they are still carrying out investigations to ascertain the cause of the accident.

“We are still investigating and we shall continue updating. We have also liaised with the county government to ensure that there is safety on this lake to prevent such incidents,” said the county administrator.

Ilchamus ward MCA Wesley Lekakimon has since suggested that each of the 10 beaches on the shores of Lake Baringo be equipped with radio communication equipment for quick response whenever such incidents happen.

“We should also have an ambulance deployed in this area to respond and save lives,” he noted.

Baringo Deputy Governor Felix Maiyo condoled with the affected families, appealing to boat riders and locals in the area to be cautions.

He said the boat tragedy happened because some safety measures were ignored.

“The boat was carrying 23 people when it was supposed to carry a maximum of 10. The beach management unit and boat owners’ association should enforce regulations and laws to be carrying the right number of people and their water vessels should also be in good condition to avoid such incidents,” said Maiyo.

“Anyone boarding a boat should also use a life jacket to increase the chances of them surviving in case of such an incident,” he added.

Three years ago, three people drowned on the same lake after a speed boat capsized on January 2021 with 12 passengers from two families on board.

The families were headed for an expedition to the Teddy Bear Hotel at Lempakany Island. Of those who survived, nine swam to safety.

A tour guide also drowned during a swimming expedition at Devils Island on the same lake in 2014, while earlier in 2011, an academic tour turned tragic after two students from Comboni Youth Polytechnic in Gilgil drowned.

In 2004, Nairobi Hospital Hill School principal and seven parents also died at the lake when their boat capsized following a storm.

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