PAIN AND DESPAIR

A mourner is overcome with grief during the mass burial for 78 victims of the oil tanker inferno at Sachang’wan, Molo, last week. They were buried near the site of the tragedy on the Nakuru-Eldoret road. Photos/JOSEPH KIHERI

What you need to know:

  • The sorrow and heartbreak were unbearable as a mourning nation, led by its leaders, laid to rest the victims of the Molo fire tragedy in a mass grave

It was a burial like no other. Seventy eight victims of the Sachang’wan tanker tragedy were buried in a mass grave at a tear-drenched funeral attended by nearly the entire Government of Kenya. It was the biggest mass burial in living memory.

The bodies of men, women and children of all tribes, which were burnt beyond recognition, were arranged in neat rows in the freshly dug earth.

It was a ceremony heavy with symbolism, of Kenyans finding unity in the soil of their troubled Rift Valley homeland that they never could in life.

Unlike the normal village burial whose graves are dug by the loving hands of friends, family and neighbours, the mass grave was hacked into the earth by a bulldozer, a pointer to the horror of this tragedy which killed so many and destroyed bodies so completely that no science could tell them apart.

Hundreds wept, dozens swooned and fainted in a display of untold sorrow and heart break.

Relatives stared in bleak helplessness and hopelessness at the industrial enormity of the grave, their loss compounded by the fact that there will be no private farewell for their loved ones.

Some carried framed pictures of those they lost when an overturned tanker full of petrol exploded, killing 130.

Ordinary Kenyans

Thousands of ordinary Kenyans came to be with the families, first at the funeral service at Nguzu Primary School and later at the mass grave two kilometres away.

The country’s leadership was there too, led by President Mwai Kibaki, Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka, former president Daniel arap Moi, Cabinet ministers, members of Parliament and top civil servants.

The 78 were buried without coffins and in body bags only a few paces from where they died. The grave was dug within a neat plantation of trees, under which some of the victims died, and was divided into two sections. The bodies, wrapped in polythene bags, were laid out and covered in large, white canvass sheets.

The grave was dug at the weekend by a bulldozer hired from a road contractor. It is to be cemented afterwards and a monument built in memory of the deceased. The piece of land was donated by a local farmer, Mr Richard Muir.

The thousands of mourners squeezed among the trees and some climbed up to get a better view of the sad proceedings.

The burial was the sorrowful climax of a mournful week for the residents of Sachang’wan and Kibunja villages in Molo District a good number of who lost as many as four close relatives in the fire.

Some of them still have relatives being treated for the severe burns they sustained in the fire which engulfed them as they scooped fuel from the tanker on the Nakuru-Eldoret road, about 30 kilometres from Nakuru.

A pall of grief hung over the village, particularly during the prayer service at Nguzu Primary School, when the dams of pent-up emotion burst forth shortly after clergymen – including Muslim leaders - led by Catholic Bishop Philip Anyolo of Nakuru Catholic diocese finished with the final rites at the graveside.

Men, women and children sobbed uncontrollably with many fainting as their grief proved too much to bear. Those who were overcome received First Aid by Kenya Red Cross Society and St John Ambulance staff who were on hand to help and comfort those in need. The volunteers were assisted by police officers.

Rift Valley provincial commissioner Hassan Noor Hassan together with Mr Sammy Lui, were the masters of ceremony.

Relatives spoke of the lesson learnt from the death of their loved ones who were being buried together irrespective of their tribal and religious backgrounds. Mr Noor appealed for peace and unity, saying when death came calling, it did not select any of them on tribal or religious grounds.

President Kibaki instructed the Ministry of Special Programmes to hasten the implementation of the Disaster Management Strategy.

He said the double fire tragedy at Nakumatt Downtown and Molo that left close to 150 people dead and many more with serious injuries had amplified the need to have a comprehensive strategy to deal with disasters.

Earlier, Special Programmes minister Naomi Shaban said the policy document had been received by the Cabinet but was returned to the drafters for fine-tuning before it is implemented.

Mr Odinga said Kenyans, especially students, should be taught disaster preparedness.

Religious leaders urged the Government to tackle corruption and tribalism which they said have polarised Kenyans.