Residents of Naivasha are trying to come to terms with a bizarre incident in which a middle-aged man took his life by setting himself ablaze.
The man who had on several occasions threatened to die by suicide locked himself in the house in Manera estate on the outskirts of Naivasha town before taking his life.
The victim who lived alone had earlier told his friends that he was ready to take his life as life was becoming unbearable and he did not want to bother his family members.
A witness Joe Mbuthia said that they were woken by screams from neighbors who noticed that the deceased house was on fire.
He narrated how they attempted to break the door down adding that it was impossible as the victim had locked it from the inside.
“The deceased who was a casual laborer in town had threatened to take his life by setting himself ablaze but people did not take him seriously until it was too late,” he said.
In a second incident, a middle-aged man died by suicide by hanging himself to a rope in his house in Karati area of Naivasha in unclear circumstances.
The body of the man was found dangling from a rope by his wife before police were called in as cases of suicide in and around the lakeside town continued to rise.
A village elder Isaac Kuria said that the man who had a business in Naivasha town did not leave behind a suicide note.
He added that the family and friends were still in shock as the man had been in good health earlier in the day and no one knew the motive behind the move to commit suicide.
“The wife left for a job in the morning only to receive a call later in the day from the house help that the husband had died by suicide,” he said.
According to John Kinuthia from the Naivasha GBV cluster group, the town had recorded over 10 cases of suicide since the year began with several students involved.
“We are concerned by the rising number of suicides among the youths and we have launched a campaign where we are encouraging them to speak out,” he said.
Naivasha OCPD Stephen Kirui confirmed both cases adding that the bodies had been collected and taken to the local mortuary.