An 80-year-old man has died after a
late-night fire razed his home in Kegwa village, Kirinyaga county.
Christopher Mwaniki was alone in his wooden
house when the fire broke out at 10 pm on Tuesday night, catching
neighbours off guard and plunging the quiet village into shock.
Residents
said they were alerted by frantic screams from the deceased’s relatives
but initially struggled to trace where the cries were coming from.
“We
heard people screaming but we could not immediately tell where the
alarm was coming from until I received a call from the family,” resident Teresiah Wanjira said.
Neighbour John Kimotho said he rushed to the scene after hearing Mwaniki’s daughter,
Jane Wawira, wailing.
He mobilised other villagers in a desperate
attempt to put out the flames.
“We tried to help,
but the fire had spread quickly. The wooden house was burning fiercely,”
Kimotho said.
“It is painful that we could not save him.”
By
the time residents managed to access the house, Mwaniki's body had been burned beyond recognition.
The
deceased’s granddaughter, Mary Wanjiru, said she was informed of the
tragedy at 11.30 pm while at her home, about three kilometres
away.
“I was woken up and told my grandfather was
no more. I was in shock and could not even walk properly until a
neighbour came to assist me,” she said, fighting back tears.
Detectives from Kirinyaga East subcounty visited the scene and launched investigations to establish the cause of the fire.
The
body was moved to Embu Level 5 Hospital mortuary, where it awaits a
post-mortem examination as the family begins burial arrangements.
Residents eulogised the deceased as a calm man whose death has shaken the
community.
Authorities say investigations are ongoing to determine what triggered the fire.
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