A 20-year-old herder from Ijara Garissa County was injured after accidentally playing with an old grenade as a ball on Friday, March 31.
According to police reports, the grenade was believed forgotten by the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF).
Reportedly, the herder was manning the sheep when he noticed the ball-like object on the field and started playing with it.
However, after a few minutes, it exploded, causing multiple injuries. Emergency service providers rushed the victim to the hospital for emergency treatment.
According to the Ijara Deputy County Commissioner, the herdsboy was stabilised but was still being monitored.
"I urge all the chiefs and their assistants to educate the public on the effect of unused explosives," the Ijara Deputy County Commissioner Willy Cheboi stated.
He further called upon security personnel to keep up-to-date inventory to avoid such incidents from reoccurring, noting that they may result in fatalities.
Cases of abandoned grenades found by residents have been reported in the past, with a similar case recorded on March 14.
A herder, 21, in Mandera East, Mandera County, was injured while trying to break an abandoned grenade.
Intrigued by the unusual object, he used a stone to try and break it before it exploded on hhis face resulting in serious injuries.
In another fatal incident reported in 2022, two children were killed by the impact of an explosion after attempting to play with a grenade.
Police concluded that suspected terrorists from Somalia abandoned the explosives in the region along the border.
"We have deployed experts to asses teh area for any abandoned explosives to avoid such accidents. We will also educate the public on how to handle the objects," stated North Eastern police commander George Seda.
