NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 6 – It is a long wait full of fear, anxiety and hope as relatives wait to know the fate of those who were aboard the missing plane from Kitale to Nairobi.
More than 24 hours after the incident, some relatives were clinging to the hope that they will reunite with their loved ones but for some, they were a little bit impatient and seem to have resigned to fate.
As narrated, most have not slept since the news broke of the missing plane on Tuesday evening.
“We were enjoying our food a few hours after breaking our fast when the news broke. It was terrible,” Mohamed Abdi, whose cousin is among the 10 people in the missing aircraft said.
Abdi seemed to have lost hope and instead urged the authorities to expedite the search saying “we are ready for God’s will.”
“It was an accident. We just want prompt information about the search process but we are ready for the outcome.”
Among the tens of friends and relatives was Charity Wafula, who though shaken, expressed optimism that her five-year-old nephew will reunite with his father, Robin Wafula.
Charity’s brother was returning to the city from their maternal home in Kitale and going with their last conversation early Tuesday, he was full of life.
“We are still hopeful and we are still praying as a family. We believe we will get them while they are still alive,” she said at the Weston Hotel where a counselling centre has been set up.
A majority were not emotionally stable to speak to journalists, some would be seen breaking down, others making frantic calls while there were those who were planning how they will marshal resources and join the rescue team on the ground.
“We need to go there and get information firsthand,” a relative could be heard saying.
– The challenge –
Though a multi-agency team was ready to conduct a thorough search in Aberdare ranges, the weather couldn’t allow.
The process has been postponed to Thursday morning.
“The bad weather is the main challenge to the search and rescue Operations, We have three choppers among other resources,” National Disaster Management Unit spokesperson Pius Masai said.
The area of interest according to authorities covers Nyandarua and Muranga Counties.
– What we know so far –
The Cessna plane with 10 people on board went missing in Kenyan airspace Tuesday at 5.20pm.
Among the 10 are eight passengers and two pilots.
When it was last seen, the plane was at 40 nautical miles from Nairobi, flying at 11,000ft above sea level.
The Cessna plane belongs to FlySax and is operated by East African Safari Air Express.
The search by a multi-agency team drawn from Kenya Civil Aviation Authority, Aircraft Investigation Department, Kenya Wildlife Service, National Police Service among others is currently concentrated within the Aberdare Forest.
The crisis centre number is +254 706 305 305.
