This archive report was first published on 10 October 2019.
Published on October 10, 2019, the search and rescue operation to retrieve a car that plunged into the Indian Ocean with a 35-year-old woman and her 4-year-old daughter on board has affected movement of ships in and out of Port of Mombasa.
At least eight vessels have been kept waiting to dock, with some located as far as 4 knots away from the Port. The divers were retrieving the vehicle, a Toyota Isis registration number KCB 289C, which plunged into the Indian Ocean on September 29, 2019.
Government Spokesperson Cyrus Oguna explained that the operation had to be delayed for a few minutes to allow two ships to cross the channel before the exercise. He added that the operation might be suspended if need be, as they had reached a critical stage.
“Though we have not stopped the operation of the ferries, if need be we might suspend them since we have reached critical stage of operation which is estimated to take at least three hours to retrieve the car,” said Mr Oguna.
The ongoing dredging at the Port of Mombasa has been blamed for interfering with the visibility in the channel, making it difficult for the divers to locate the car. The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) is yet to give its report on the delay of the ships' turnaround time, which is attributed to the ongoing rescue operations at the Likoni for the past 11 days.
