Man Drowns While Celebrating His Birthday With Wife

An image of a hand of a drowning child emerging from the water.
An image of a hand of a drowning child emerging from the water.
File

A man in Kirinyaga County drowned in River Nyamindi while celebrating his birthday as his wife watched from the river banks. 

In a video that surfaced on Friday, February 3, a police officer at the scene stated that the man dived into the river to swim despite not having the know-how and drowned.

The officer added that the wife, who was on the river banks, was in shock as she watched her husband drown but could not save him.

Residents at the banks of River Nyamindi where two bodies were found deda on February 20 2020
Residents at the banks of River Nyamindi, Kirinyaga County where two bodies were found on February 20, 2020.
File

“They came here to celebrate the man’s birthday but unfortunately, he did not know how to swim.

“We have been looking for him for three hours but we have not been able to find (his body) anywhere,” the officer stated. 

Recounting the moments before the ordeal, a resident stated that she had offered the couple drinking water at her home but was unaware that they were headed to the river.

“He was a young man. When I saw the lady, I was shocked because they had come with the man to drink water at my house,” the resident recalled.

The resident who reported the matter to the police explained that the woman called him to report that her husband had drowned moments after they got to the river bank. 

“We did not know their intention when they came to the river but I later received a phone call from the lady informing me that the man had drowned,” he explained.

The wife was later taken to the police station to record a statement.

In a separate incident on Wednesday, January 18, a man and a female companion succumbed at a dam in Juja while on a late-night picnic

The two had parked their car on the edge of the dam, which was a popular hangout spot at the time but vehicle plunged into the dam under unclear circumstances.

Nyamindi
A section of River Nyamindi
Nation