This archive report was first published on 9 January 2020.
On Wednesday, a distressing scene unfolded in Awasi, Nyando sub-county, where a 29-year-old woman, Mercy Anyango, locked herself and her four children in their house, inflicting serious wounds on them with a sharp knife.
According to eyewitnesses, neighbors were alerted by the sounds of wailing children and broke into the house to find the five bleeding profusely, with the woman still holding the knife in her hands.
The woman and her children, two boys aged 12 and 7, and two girls aged 11 and 9, were rushed to Awasi Catholic Dispensary for first aid before being referred to Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) in Kisumu.
Dr. Brian Amata, who works at the emergency unit, confirmed that the four children have been stabilized, while the doctors are in the process of taking x-ray pictures of the mother to establish the extent of her injuries.
Speaking to the media at her hospital bed, Anyango revealed that she took the drastic action after being chased away from her matrimonial home in Oyugis.
"I have endured so much pain in his hands. This time round he descended on me with kicks and blows and asked me to leave because he married another wife. So I decided to kill myself and the children," she said.
