Editor's Review

The now-deceased mother had trekked kilometers when she met her end.

A nursing mother collapsed and died in Baringo county while in search of water for her family.

Identified as Emily Chebon, the now-deceased mother had trekked a number of kilometers when she met her end.

She hailed from Ngaratuko village situated in Baringo North; witnesses say she had starved for a time and that her body was in a sorry state by the time of her death.

"We tried touching her body and we established all had not been well. She had not appeared like a breastfeeding mother who gave birth recently. The water that we gave her to get her back to life didn't work," said a local.

A native of Baringo county preparing food for her family. Photo: Facebook.
Her husband Henry Chesut divulged that she had fed on porridge before leaving home; he says he's now burdened to fend for his family single-handedly.

"Every morning she takes porridge. Now I'm left with the children," he said amid sobs.

Baringo is among the counties that had been listed in the alert phase of the ravaging drought.

Statistics from the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) show that early cessation of the 2022 long rains season worsened the drought situation in 19 of the 23 arid and semi-arid (ASAL) counties.

These counties were already bearing the brunt of the poor performance of three previous consecutive failed seasons.

According to NDMA, six counties have been earmarked in the Alarm drought phase while 13 others are in the Alert phase.

The six are Laikipia, Mandera, Marsabit, Wajir, Isiolo and Samburu.

Those in the Alert phase include Turkana, Garissa, Tana River, Kitui, Baringo, Meru, Lamu, Kilifi, Kwale, Taita Taveta, Kajiado, Narok, and Tharaka Nithi.

The situation has exacerbated food insecurity in the aforementioned regions subjected the people therein to potential after-effects of famine.

According to statistics, over 3 million people have been subjected to danger by the state of the drought in the aforementioned counties.