Private divers in Mombasa County have not been able to retrieve the bodies of mother and child who plunged into the Indian Ocean Sunday evening.
For the divers to start their rescue mission, they are supposed to consider factors such as visibility and the strength of ocean tides which will ensure their safety during the operation.
Explaining the reason why the operation has been hampered, Musa, a diver stated, “The heavy rains have messed up the water. The ocean water is supposed to be clear but due to the heavy rains at the coast it has a whitish colour which makes water visibility difficult.
“We are waiting for the water tides to subside, when the water current becomes low, our work will be much easier and it will not be a risk to our lives.”
The three-day mission has not been successful due to lack of government divers and unpreparedness by Kenya Ferry Services to handle such a tragedy.
According to the Kenya Ferry Services, the plunged vehicle is lying 60m deep in the channel.
As at Monday, KFS was in talks with Kenya Navy to get enough oxygen to sustain the divers. The available oxygen tanks can last the divers for only 30m deep.
The vehicle plunged into the Indian Ocean on Sunday evening with its occupants being a mother and child.
The tragedy has caused uproar from members of the public who have blamed the government for the slow response.
On Sunday evening, the private divers were reluctant to aid in the rescue operations as they blamed the government of failing to support them in giving them employment.