PCEA Church member missing after being swept into Ocean at Diani Beach
PCEA Church member missing after being swept into Ocean at Diani Beach
A man is missing after being swept into the ocean while swimming at Congo Beach in Diani, Kwale County.
The victim, identified as Paul Gacheru, was among 53 members of St. Stephen PCEA Church in Voi who had travelled to Diani for a leisure outing.
According to police, the incident occurred on October 18, 2026, at around 4 p.m. as the group was swimming along Diani Beach Road.
Gacheru, described as a dark-complexioned man with short hair and standing approximately 5.8 feet tall, was reportedly pushed towards the ocean by the water before submerging.
Efforts by local divers to rescue him were unsuccessful, leaving him missing as the search operation continued.
Police officers from Diani Police Station visited the scene and established that the ocean was experiencing high tides and strong waves at the time of the incident.
Authorities have circulated information about the missing man to police stations along the coastline, urging officers to remain vigilant and report any developments.
Gacheru was last seen wearing whitish shorts.
The search and rescue operation was ongoing by the time of the police report.
And a 16-year-old pupil was found dead in a water pan in Tsangatsini Location, Kaloleni Sub-County, Kilifi County.
The deceased a Grade Six pupil at Tsangatsini Comprehensive School, was discovered floating face down in Mwadulu Water Pan at around 3 a.m. on Monday, October 19, 2026.
According to police, the body was found in the shallow water pan a short distance from her grandmother’s home.
Police officers led by the Mariakani Deputy Officer Commanding Station, alongside the duty officer, crime-aid personnel and detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in Kaloleni, visited the scene.
The girl’s father, told police that his daughter had left home for her grandmother’s residence at around 11 a.m. on Sunday, October 18, but did not return home as usual.
Family members reportedly searched for her in the neighbourhood before discovering her body in the water pan during the early hours of Monday.
The report indicated that the teenager had a history of epilepsy, although the circumstances surrounding her death had yet to be established.
Her body was retrieved from the water and transferred to the Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital mortuary, where it is being preserved pending a postmortem examination.
Police investigations are expected to establish the circumstances leading to the pupil’s death.
