By Betty Luke
A section of Isiolo residents have lamented over the poor state of the Isiolo Referral Hospital morgue whose refrigerators are out of service forcing attendants to preserve the bodies on the floor.
Bodies of departed souls that deserve dignity even in death piled next to each other and foul smell is just a glimpse of the mortuary where bereaved families are allowed to preserve their loved ones for a maximum of two days.
The worrying state has in the last few months forced residents to seek the services, that are part of last respect, in neighbouring counties while those unable to raise money being forced to hurriedly bury their loved ones.
Mr Kelvin Kigwe and Mfalme Morris are victims of the sad experience.
They say, the experience they underwent at the morgue on Wednesday, while seeking to have the body of a minor preserved, is something that they never wish to experience any other time.
“Bodies are kept on the floor, piled next to each other. We were told the body could only be preserved (at the mortuary) on condition that we would pick it up the following day. There was no space,” Mr Morris recalls.
Since the kin’s family had no financial capacity to take the body elsewhere, the two assisted by their friends were forced to contribute money to enable transfer to the Nanyuki Teaching and Referral Hospital morgue, more than 30 kilometers away.
The incident is not different from that of Ms Ireen Kinya who lost her eight-year-old son two weeks ago.
She was forced to bury the minor a day later as he could not be kept for longer at the referral hospital’s mortuary.
The facility that was built in 1989 when the county had a population of about 10,000 people has not experienced any notable improvement despite serving clients from as far as Marsabit, Samburu and Meru among other counties.
Insecurity and accident cases has seen the morgue receive overwhelming number of bodies.
Residents have demanded answers over what seemingly appears to be a case of total neglect, with majority claiming it is aimed at punishing a group of the residents.
“I wonder why the county government is so silent on this. Why won’t the Christians serving in the government speak against this? It is us (Christians) who stand to suffer,” said Mr Morris.
The Press Point is reliably informed that the county government had, last year, initiated the process to renovate the mortuary.
Among the improvements that were to be made was increasing its capacity from the current twelve to 16 and repair of the faulty coolers.
Medical Services Chief Officer Abdirahman Ibrahim had at the time revealed that the tendering process was in top gear and that once the contract was awarded, the facility would be improved to ensure the dead are handled with dignity.
“We understand that there is a serious issue with the mortuary but we are working on it. Funds have been set aside and we are in the final stages of issuing the tender,” Mr Ibrahim assured on October 26, 2023.
It is however not clear whether the tender was awarded since work is yet to commence at the mortuary.
This comes while process to elevate the referral facility to a level five hospital is underway.
