Kirinyaga: Family In Agony As Son Drowns In Hotel Pool During New Year Celebrations

• A family in Kagio, Kirinyaga county, is mourning their 13-year-old son, who drowned in a hotel’s swimming pool on New Year’s Day
• Eunice Wairimu, his mother, reported him missing around 6:30 pm while she was breastfeeding her three-year-old baby
• Mwea West sub-county Police Commander Mbatian Kantai said the boy’s body was retrieved from the pool around 11 pm after a two-hour search

Didacus Malowa, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

Kirinyaga - A shadow of sadness and grief has engulfed a family in Kagio following their son's death in a swimming pool on New Year's Day.

The 13-year-old Grade 7 pupil reportedly went to a local hotel in the company of her mother to usher in the new year.

Confirming the incident, Mwea West sub-county Police Commander Mbatian Kantai said the young boy's body was retrieved after two hours of scouring the pool.

A report by Citizen Digital revealed the boy had gone for New Year celebrations at the hotel in the company of his mother, Eunice Wairimu, and younger sibling.

"We arrived here at around 3pm with my children to celebrate the New Year, and after paying the swimming pool fee, I did not know I would go home without my 13-year-old boy who was very happy as we entered the hotel," Wairimu cried out.

When did Wairimu discover her son missing?

The grief-stricken said she was breastfeeding her toddler when she realised the 13-year-old boy was not in the pool.

Wairimu said she immediately notified his father and the hotel management, kickstarting a search that would confirm her worst fears.

"At around 6:30pm, I could not spot him as I was breastfeeding my three-year-old baby, and that's when I informed his father and the hotel management that he was missing," Wairimu added.

The body was taken to the Kerugoya County Referral Hospital mortuary as the family awaits a post-mortem examination.

Migori boy drowns while trying to swim

In another tragic incident, Young Maccain Okinyi, a Grade Five pupil at St Gabriel’s Primary School in Nyatike, tragically drowned in River Migori.

Okinyi and another boy were reportedly fleeing from Nyatike forest when they attempted to swim across the swollen river.

Following traditional Luo customs, Okinyi’s family waited by the river for three days for his body to resurface.

Local divers found Okinyi’s body downstream, and residents have called for a police investigation into the incident.