Body of man who drowned in Kirinyaga river on his birthday recovered

The body of the man who drowned in River Nyamindi in Ngucui village, Kirinyiga County on Thursday has been retrieved by private divers and local volunteers.

Kelvin Muthomi a hotelier at Kimbimbi town in Mwea constituency,  had gone to the river to celebrate his birthday in the company of his fiancé' and friend when he allegedly slipped and fell into the waterway.

Speaking after Muthomi's body was retrieved, the deceased's father, Duncan Mutuma, who hails from Meru County,  said he was in shock after receiving word of his son's unfortunate demise but still immediately traveled to the scene of incident.

According to Mutuma, who was accompanied by friends and family, divers spent the better part of Friday looking for his son's corpse until they eventually recovered it at around 7:30 pm.

"My son and his girlfriend were planning to get married and he had already informed me. He had come in this river to celebrate his  24th birthday when the incident happened," Mutuma told Citizen Digital.

Local divers led by Dunson Murango added that they had a difficult time retrieving Muthomi's body owing to the river's harsh conditions but they persevered for the sake of the deceased's kin.

"The body was stuck under some rocks and the water was extremely cold but we had to help his family which was in agony," Murango said.

The deceased's body has since been moved to Kibugi funeral home for storage and post-mortem.