The body of 17-year-old Alex Ochieng who drowned in river Migori in the Masaba area has finally been retrieved.
Ochieng is said to have drowned in the river during a swimming expedition with his brother on Friday evening.
According to Kuria West police commander Cleti Kimaiyo, the body of the deceased was retrieved by local divers who had camped along the river since he went missing.
“According to the Preliminary report, the deceased, who was in the company of his brother, is said to have drowned while they were swimming in river Migori on Friday evening,” he said.
The Police commander added that they have already launched an investigation to establish what transpired before the drowning incident.
“We are currently ongoing with the investigation to come to the root cause of the incident,” the commander added.
Kimaiyo advised the parents to restrain their children from accessing the river to avoid such deaths.
He told the residents to avoid swimming or bathing in the river and instead fetch water and bathe at home.
The body has been moved to Ojele memorial hospital mortuary for preservation.
Separate incident
In September last year, two students from Sibuoche mixed secondary school drowned in the same river after they were sent home for school fees.
The two were in the company of two other colleagues from the same institution when the tragic incident happened.
On-lookers said the students had passed by the Church of God of Prophecy at Jua kali shades within Migori town to talk to the church leadership.
Reverend Joshua Kangie, the pastor in charge of the church, said students always pass by the church before leaving for their homes.
“While they were waiting for church officials, the four decided to take a swim in the nearby river Migori when the unfortunate incident happened, we are still in shock,” Kangie said.
Onlookers said the students were enjoying the swim in the river when one of them started drowning after drifting into a deeper end of the river.
His colleague rushed to rescue him and they both drowned.
“The other two rushed to call jua kali artisans and a group washing cars nearby who arrived, but it was so late,” Jane Akinyi, a local trader, said.
