Three dead, 26 rescued after boat capsizes in Watamu

Three people among them a five-year-old child died on Saturday afternoon after the boat they were on a dolphin watch expedition capsized within the Watamu Marine National Park.

Tragedy struck the boat which was carrying 15 foreign tourists and other Kenyan tourists when they were out in the ocean watching dolphins.

Reports indicate that the boat was hit by a strong wave and capsized.

Watamu Marine National Park and Reserve Warden Dadley Kiluhula confirmed the accident and said 26 people were rescued and are stable.

In a telephone interview, he said those who died were found under the boat benches and suspect they were stuck when the boat capsized and overturned.

“The boat was among others that were watching dolphins in an area which has never had such an accident then suddenly their boat was hit by a strong wave it capsized,” he said.

Kiluhula said quick response from the boats nearby and KWS officials helped to save the lives of the 26.

He said three were still in hospital but in stable condition, while the others were rushed to hospital and discharged.

The Warden said the two bodies were going to be buried later in the evening according to the Muslim customs while the body of the minor had been taken to Malindi mortuary.

Watamu Ward MCA Ibrahim Abdi said he was shocked to learn of the accident in his area and sent a message of condolence to the affected families.

Abdi said he received the news of the tragedy while in the company of Governor Gideon Mung’aro and immediately they dispatched a response team to help in the rescue operation.

He called on the county and national government to come up with strategies for having strong rescue boats to ensure there is a swift response in case of similar accidents in future.

“We are going to reach out to our Blue Economy CS Salim Mvurya, Public Service CS Aisha Jumwa, Mombasa Governor so that together we can look for a way to have rescue boats that can respond quickly in future,” he said.