Chesongoch landslide: Survivors recall terrifying moments before disaster
Residents from Kasegei Village, Chesongoch area in Elgeyo Marakwet County, recounted what happened before the landslides and floods were witnessed in the area at around 2:00 am.
They said that there was an unusual sound, like that of an aircraft in the sky.
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According to resident Vacity Jeptoo, the rainfall was extremely heavy, and they were startled by a loud, unusual sound coming from above, although nothing was visible.
“Something roared like a plane. When we heard that, we woke each other up, saying, ‘Wake up, let’s run, because we don’t know where this plane is going to crash,'” Jeptoo said.
Jeptoo added that the incident caused them great anxiety and fear, prompting them to wake up their neighbours and flee to safety.
“We ran to a safe place, the Murkutwo area, which is about five (5) kilometres away,” Jeptoo said.
Betty Cheserek recounted the heartbreaking incident, stating that two (2) families who are her neighbours lost five (5) people.
The resident further indicated that many people are still unaccounted for to date, saying that some of her neighbours lost children and a father in the incident.
“Many people are missing, and we don’t know where they are. The soil has covered the area like a road,” Cheserek added.
However, the residents said they took decisive action to wake up their neighbours and flee to a safe area.
On his part, the OCPD of the Kerio Valley area, Zablon Otieno, said that efforts to search for these people are continuing, with approximately fifty (50) people still missing.
The officer said that military personnel and police are continuing search operations to retrieve the bodies of those who are still unaccounted for.
“There are about fifty (50) people missing, and we don’t know their location. People are searching for them but not finding them,” Otieno said.
This comes as it has been confirmed that fifteen (15) people have lost their lives in the landslide tragedy in the Chesongoch area, Elgeyo Marakwet County.
