Woman and eight-year-old daughter killed in Molo night fire
A 24-year-old woman, Beatrice Wairimu, and her eight-year-old daughter, Angel Wairimu, died on Saturday morning when the house they were sleeping in caught fire in the Umoja Casino area of Molo, Nakuru County.
Molo Sub County Police Commander Timon Odingo said the incident happened after midnight and investigations have been launched.
Beatrice's father, Mr James Macharia, said he heard a commotion in the house around 2am and when he came out, some of the rooms including the living room were all fine.
"As I approached my daughter's bedroom, I called from inside to open the door but she did not answer. I broke down the door but was shocked to see flames and smoke coming from the room, which did not allow me to enter," said Mr Macharia, adding that he and his wife raised the alarm and alerted neighbours who immediately arrived on the scene.
Speaking at the scene, Mr Macharia said there was a power outage when the victim went to bed and as a result she lit a candle which could have caused the fire.
Beatrice Wairimu Macharia, 24, and her daughter Angel Wairimu, 8, who died after a night fire in the Umoja-Casino area of Molo, Nakuru County.
Mr Macharia said his daughter looked happy as, before she went to bed, they discussed how she would travel to Nairobi on Monday where she had secured a job.
Loved by everyone in the family
He said Beatrice was humble, hardworking and loved by everyone in the family.
Residents have complained of power cuts in Molo, Elburgon and surrounding areas in recent days and have called on Kenya Power to install more transformers in the area to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Mr Peter Muriu, a resident, said power outages were common in the area and called on Kenya Power to provide enough transformers to serve the residents.
"Power outages in the area have led to loss of household items including the recent one where we lost a woman and her daughter," said Mr Muriu.
Mr Isaac Njoroge, a relative, said when he arrived at the scene, nothing could be done to save the lives of mother and daughter as they were already suffocated and killed by the smoke.
"The situation was bad and we had to break the window and remove the bodies. Unfortunately, I lost my cousin and her daughter," said Mr Njoroge.
The bodies of the victims were taken to the Molo Sub-County Hospital mortuary.
