Six of eight family members who died in the Maai Mahiu flooding tragedy were buried in Longonot, Naivasha, in a ceremony full of grief.
Tears flowed freely as the six who, included four children, were buried next to each other in a public cemetery a few kilometres from the scene of the tragedy.
For the family of John Mwangi and Mary Muthoni who escaped the floods, this marked one of the darkest periods as they lost a total of eight members of the family.
The family had met on the eve of the tragedy to raise funds for the release of their son incarcerated in Naivasha prison when the seasonal dam burst killing over 60 people.
Those who died included two adults Jane Muthoni and Elizabeth Mugure and five children Lewis Ngige, Blessing Muthoni, Alvin Njoroge, Mary Muthoni, Owen Kimani and Anne Muthoni.
Already, two of the minors were buried last weekend in their father’s rural home in Kinangop.
A relative, Tabitha Wanja, said that they were still trying to come to terms with the tragedy, having lost all their personal effects, relatives, friends and homes.
While thanking the government and well-wishers for the continued support, Wanja said that they were not ready to go back to their homes as they were still traumatised.
“Over the weekend, we buried two children in Kinangop and as we bury the other six we are calling on the government to hasten the process of resettling us,” she said.
Wanja termed the tragedy as the darkest moment for the family and other victims as they slowly start their recovery journey in the camps.
Counsellor Monica Gathure said it would take over six months for the family to heal under the ongoing programme by various groups including the Kenya Red Cross.
“The loss and grief is a process that takes over six months and we have formed counselling and therapy groups to assist the victims of this tragedy,” she said.
Evangelist Mercy Nungari called for continued support for the families as many lost several relatives and all their personal effects, documents and savings.
“We are calling on the government to keep its promise of resettling these families as they are too traumatised and cannot go back to their homes,” local leader Nyaga Ireri said.
