The body of a young man has been discovered by his mother, two days after violent riots erupted at an Ebola quarantine centre in western Kenya. Mary Ochieng, 42, found her 19-year-old son James among the debris of the destroyed facility, where he had been held under mandatory observation following a suspected case. The riots, which began on Monday night, were sparked by anger over overcrowding, lack of food, and fears that the centre was a death trap.
Local officials confirm that at least five people died in the chaos, but Ochieng says she was not informed of her son's fate until she searched for him herself. 'They told me nothing. I walked through the ruins and found him buried under a collapsed wall.
' The incident highlights the deep mistrust between communities and health authorities in the region, a tension that has been exacerbated by the economic fallout of the epidemic. Many families depend on daily wages and cannot afford prolonged quarantine. As the government scrambles to restore order, questions are being asked about the compensation for the families of the dead and the promised food supplies that never arrived.
For Ochieng, no amount of money will bring back her son, but she demands accountability. 'Someone must answer for this.' The health ministry has vowed an investigation.
