Death Toll from Kirinyaga Brew Rises to 13, Angry Residents Torch Liquor Den

The death toll in Kirinyaga illicit brew incident rose to 13 after more victims succumbed in Kangai and Kandongu villages.

This prompted a section of residents in the area to burnt down a bar in the area.

The deaths happened after the victims consumed the drink Monday night, police and locals said.

At least four others are blind after they consumed the chemical.

Central Regional Commissioner Fredrick Shisia said angry Kangai villagers torch raided and torched the bar linked to deaths.

He said security teams were on the ground to handle the crisis.

The residents stormed the bar owned by a local tycoon at dawn, destroying property before setting it ablaze.

During the raid, crates of beer, tables and other property were destroyed, police and witnesses said.

Locals said the revelers went to a local bar on Monday night and ordered the drink, which they enjoyed while chatting before heading home.

However, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, the victims began complaining of stomach pains and vomiting.

Six of the victims died at homes while the rest succumbed in hospitals.

The contents of the brew are yet to be known.

The National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse

(NACADA) said it is alarmed by the deaths and loss of eyesight among people reported to have consumed the suspicious alcoholic drinks.

“From preliminary reports, the deaths occurred as a result of consumption of an unidentified substance whose contents are yet to be established,” said the authority Chief Executive Officer Dr Anthony Omerikwa.

He also cautioned the public on the rising cases of illicit alcohol-related deaths and illnesses.

Omerikwa urged the public to avoid consumption of alcohol whose quality cannot be verified.

He appealed to the County Governments to execute their devolved licensing mandate to control the proliferation of bars, and wines and spirits outlets, many of which do not meet the required operating standards.

At least six family members are among those who died and five others went partially blind after consuming illicit liquor in Kangai village, Mwea east, Kirinyaga county.

Kerugoya County Health boss George Karoki said among the deceased was a patient who had been referred to the Kerugoya County Referral Hospital but died upon arrival on Tuesday.

Karoki said relatives of the deceased said that five other family members had died within their residences after consuming the liquor and that their bodies had been moved to a funeral home.

“We are told that they died at their residences and were therefore taken straight to mortuary.”

The five are said to have been among a group that took ‘California’, a notorious, potent illicit liquor sold in the region.

Videos showed residents milling around the five people and attempting to confirm whether they had really gone blind.

Karoki said the symptoms exhibited by the victims, which include blurred vision, are consistent with previous cases of ethanol consumption.

“We suspect this illicit brew had ethanol because of the signs and symptoms that they exhibited; it showed that they had blurred vision and could not see well,” Karoki told the media.

“This type of chemical can cause liver cirrhosis and other nervous system problems, including that sign where they cannot see well.”