Two people died in a stampede that happened at the home of Busia Governor Paul Otuoma during a Christmas gift-giving event on December 23. The families of the two deceased are now asking for a full investigation into how their loved ones died, as they had hoped to receive Christmas gifts.
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The people who died were an 81-year-old woman and a 67-year-old man with disabilities, and several others were hurt in the incident. The event turned into a mess when people started fighting over food, which led to the stampede.
Rispa Anyango, the daughter of the 81-year-old woman who died, described how her mother was killed.
“She fell, and people stepped on her chest. When we finally pulled her out of the crowd, she wasn’t breathing,” she said.
Afrikanus Wanyama, the brother of the 67-year-old man who also died, said people pushed his brother during the stampede.
“My brother was in a wheelchair. When things got out of control, people pushed him down,” Wanyama shared.
The family of the 81-year-old woman claimed someone tried to secretly take her body to a local funeral home, but they refused and insisted the police should be involved.
The family of the 67-year-old man also refused to move his brother’s body until the police arrived. Right now, the bodies of the stampede victims are at the Busia County Teaching and Referral Hospital funeral home, while the injured are receiving treatment at the hospital.
On December 23, members of the Busia County Executive visited the hospital to check on the injured people from the stampede. The families are now asking the government to help them as they mourn during the Christmas season.