The government has been asked to engage experienced Lamu divers in the ongoing attempt to retrieve the bodies of a mother and her daughter from Likoni Channel.
Lamu Woman Rep Ruweida Obbo on Wednesday said local divers can lend a hand if given the chance.
Kenya Navy and private divers are yet to retrieve the bodies of 35-year-old Mariam Kighenda and her four-year-old daughter Amanda Mutheu who died after their car slid from a ferry and plunged into the Likoni Channel on September 29.
Obbo said while many local divers had no formal education or training, they have a wealth of experience in deep-sea diving.
“The government should not focus only on the Navy and the rest. I can vouch for Lamu divers as they are talented. They might do the impossible,” she said.
They have previously been involved in retrieving bodies from the deep Indian Ocean in Lamu, she said citing the August 13, 2017, incident in which 12 family members of politician Shekuwe Kahale perished at sea after their boat capsized at Manda Bruno Channel.
All the bodies were retrieved by local divers in a three-day operation.
“Lamu has divers that can do the impossible. If they retrieved 12 bodies from the Manda Bruno channel, Likoni shouldn’t be much of an issue,” Obbo said.
