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Chesongoch landslides: 14 children among 39 dead as desperate families plead for answers
16th November, 2025 01:13 PM
14 learners are among the 39 people who lost their lives after devastating landslides swept through villages in Chesongoch in Elgeyo Marakwet County.
K24 Digital has established that most of the learners were on holiday with their parents and relatives in Kerio Valley before disaster struck on the night of November 2, 2025.
Also watch: Death toll in Elgeyo Marakwet landslide rises to 39 as government plans mass burials
Among those who perished is Amon Kiprono, who died alongside his grandmother Albina Ngeringwony Kipkosgei at Kipkenda village in Keiyo North after a huge boulder rolled down and crushed their house while the duo was having supper in their house during the 8 pm incident.
The two were laid to rest in an emotional sendoff on Saturday with calls for locals to be relocated to safer grounds to avert more disaster.
39 bodies have since been recovered from the debris, while nine others are still missing, according to the latest update by Government Spokesman Isaac Mwaura.
The disaster has adversely hampered the ongoing Kenya Certificate of Secondary Examination (KCSE), but according to Education Principal Secretary Dr Julius Bitok, all logistical arrangements have been put in place to ensure the national examinations proceed seamlessly despite the challenges caused by landslides and heavy rains.
Dr Bitok visited Kapkondot Secondary School, one of the eight institutions affected by the recent landslides, to oversee the smooth administration of the exams.
“The government is committed to safeguarding the welfare of all learners. We have put in place comprehensive measures to guarantee the continuation of exams in all affected areas,” said Bitok.
Also watch: Miracle survivor recounts deadly rock tragedy in Elgeyo Marakwet
As one of the interventions, Saint Maurice Secondary School learners have been moved to Kapkondot Secondary School and special provisions have been made for one injured KCSE candidate currently sitting exams at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), Eldoret.
According to Bitok, the government has also deployed helicopters, enhanced security, and commenced infrastructure restoration to ensure examinations continue without interruption.
“Psychosocial support teams are also on the ground providing emotional and psychological counselling to affected learners, teachers, and families,” said Bitok.
Chesongoch Primary School is currently being used as a temporary shelter for landslide survivors, with many displaced families taking refuge in its classrooms.
The school is currently housing displaced families, with at least 300 households being housed at the institution.
Speaking during the burial at Kipkenda Village, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen stressed the need for residents, especially those living in high-risk areas, to have alternative housing.
According to Murkomen, the government is putting in place strategies to relocate agricultural farmers who have encroached beyond the designated boundary, popularly known as the ‘Spencer Line’.
“This encroachment has significantly contributed to the destruction of forests and the environment. We want residents to prioritise environmental conservation as one alternative way to prevent disasters like these from occurring in future,” said Murkomen.
Leaders who attended the burial, among them Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Wisley Rotich and Senator William Kisang, proposed that the affected high-risk areas be converted for planting trees such as coffee and avocado.
“This will promote cash crop farming for residents while simultaneously conserving the environment. Our people living in the hanging valley need to be relocated at least to live in a decent and safe place,” Rotich said.
Meanwhile, plans are in top gear for the burial of the Chesongoch landslide victims in Marakwet East Constituency, whose death toll currently stands at 39, with the first batch set to be laid to rest on Wednesday, November 19, 2025, while the rest will be interred on Friday, November 21, 2025.
According to Rotich, to allow the finishing of the refurbishment of the road from Embobut to Embolot, the burial for Sambirir and Embobut victims will be done on Wednesday, November 19, 2025, while the Chesongoch burial remains to be on November 21, 2025.
Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku said the government will support all families affected by disasters, including those hit by the recent landslide in Chesongoch, Elgeyo Marakwet County.
Ruku said President William Ruto has directed the Ministry to collaborate and coordinate with other ministries, government agencies, and departments to develop and roll out programmes aimed at helping communities adapt to the effects of disasters and, more broadly, climate change.
“The Ministry is doing everything possible to ensure affected families are resettled, return to normalcy and rebuild their lives in a dignified manner,” said the CS.
He reiterated that the Ministry will spearhead the rebuilding of homes and restoration of livelihoods in Chesongoch, cover hospital bills for victims and provide support for funeral costs to ensure a decent send-off for those who lost their lives.
