This archive report was first published on 25 November 2019.
On the night of Friday, November 22, 2019, a massive landslide struck Pokot South, claiming the lives of 50 people and leaving many more injured and displaced. Leah Chemnee, 23, was among the lucky ones who survived the disaster, but her tale of horror is one that will haunt her for a long time.
Chemnee, who was recuperating at Kapenguria County Hospital, recalled the events of that fateful night. At 11pm, she heard a huge stone landing outside her house, and three minutes later, her house started shaking and the ground broke loose before her own eyes. If not for the screams of her daughter, who attracted the attention of her in-laws, Chemnee would have been swallowed by the mud.
“As the house buckled, my daughter screamed attracting attention of my in-laws who responded and rescued me. I lost three children who were swept to their death. Their bodies were found metres away from the house,” she said.
Julius Ptakawu, a teacher, lost his son, a student at Chewoyet High School. His two daughters who survived are admitted at Kapenguria County Hospital with injuries. Ptakawu's wife escaped unhurt, but he managed to escape from the avalanche, but his three children were caught up in raging mud as they went to rescue their neighbours.
At the county hospital morgue, William Lokapel was still trying to come to terms with the loss of his three daughters. Mr Lokapel who went to identify the bodies said the three were swept away by the mudslide, but their mother survived and is admitted at the hospital.
Health Executive Geoffrey Lipale said the mortuary received nine bodies, and the morgue does not have the capacity to accommodate all the recovered bodies. Some had been transferred to hospitals at the nearby Kitale town in Trans Nzoia County.
