Mother, three children hospitalised after fire destroys home in Kirinyaga

According to the children’s grandmother, Judy Wambui Gachoki, the three children were sleeping in a separate room of their wooden house when their mother, Jane Wanjiku, woke them up after noticing the house was on fire.

“I was woken up by their father, John Muturi, crying for help and saying his family was trapped inside the burning house,” Wambui said.

John Muturi’s brother, Patrick Kinyua, said Muturi, who is living with a disability, tried to alert family members within the homestead to assist in rescuing his family.

“We suspect the fire was caused by an electrical fault. As we speak, my brother has gone to visit his wife and children who are admitted at Kerugoya County Referral Hospital with serious injuries,” Kinyua said.

Muturi’s sister, Mary Wanjiku, said she was still in shock after visiting the homestead and finding the house completely destroyed.

“Firefighters from the Kirinyaga County government, together with neighbours, did an excellent job responding quickly to put out the fire and help my disabled brother and his family, even though everything was reduced to ashes,” she said.

Patrick Kinyua confirmed that Muturi escaped unharmed, while his wife and three children are responding to treatment at the hospital.

“My sister-in-law, Jane Wanjiku, and her children—Lewis Murimi (13), Hezekiah Karani (6), and Mithamo Muturi (2½)—sustained serious injuries. The eldest child suffered burns to the head, and we suspect he was trying to help his younger siblings escape,” Kinyua said.

Police in Kirinyaga Central Sub-county have launched investigations into the incident. Mutira Ward administrator David Kinyua Wangui said residents are increasingly concerned about the rising number of fire incidents in the area.

“This is not the first fire incident in this ward. There have been several similar cases,” Wangui said.