The Catholic Church has officially registered their regrets after two women were injured when a 50,000 liters metallic water tank crumbled on their rental house in Kiambu Town last Monday night.
Speaking to KNA after visiting families that were affected by the incident, Father James Kariuki of St. Peter and St. Paul’s Catholic Church, sympathized with the affected families, saying it was purely an accident which was not anticipated and that the Church would foot all bills incurred by those who were affected.
“We are already talking from yesterday, when the incident occurred and were are walking together so that we take responsibility,” said Fr. Kariuki.
The Catholic priest also revealed to KNA from his office at the Church after the meeting that the Church was in the process of transferring the two causalities to a private mission hospitals where they could continue receiving treatment.
The duo was being treated at the Kiambu Level Five Hospital until today, when the Church in consultation with the families agreed to transfer them to an alternative hospital.
They were injured while seated in their houses located behind St. Peter and St. Paul Catholic Church after the tank collapsed on the rental houses injuring the two seriously while others received slight injuries.
Property of unknown value was also destroyed and the occupants of about seven families were counting their losses as they salvaged what remained in the badly damaged houses.
On the night of the accident, the victims were treated and discharged at the Kiambu Level Five Hospital but were readmitted yesterday, when their conditions appeared to have deteriorated.
“I was at the scene yesterday morning and when in consultation with officers from the Sub-county offices realized that they were not doing well, we agreed that they be returned to the same facility for follow-up,” said Fr. Kariuki
During the accident, Beth Wambui, suffered chest injuries after a block fell on her as she chatted with her neighbor.
She also suffered back pains and a broken hand while Cecilia Nthoki, suffered a head injury and had to be stitched severally. Wambui’s five months old baby girl, suffered slight bruises on her face and ears but appeared to be stable.
According to Fr. Kariuki, the tank had been installed at the Church in 2018 and when they noted that it required some repairs, “we consulted the company that constructed it and late January 2020, they sent their technical team to return to the site and repair it,” the cleric added.
A saloon car which was parked in the same compound was seriously damaged and only a shell remained of the vehicle.
Also damaged was a wall that separated the rental houses and about seven rental houses. The owners of the said house had not returned home when the incident occurred.
The supporting metal bars to the tank temporarily blocked Hospital-KK Towers road for some hours and motorists had to be diverted to use an alternative road to access Kiambu town and Kiambu Hospital thus causing traffic jam along Biashara road.
He added that the matter was now in the hands of the police as the Chief Executive of the company which had been given the contract was not responding to his calls since the incident occurred.
He, however, thanked God that there were no causalities, bearing in mind that the tank would have fallen on the transformer next to the affected houses, more lives would have been lost but that God’s hand had been seen and felt by all Christians to pray and worship Him.
By Lydia Shiloya
