Nithi bus crash: Promising doctor dies on her way to collect appointment letter

A family in Kilifi is mourning the death of their loved one, Dr Mary Mwandisha, after a bus in which she was travelling in plunged into River Nithi along the Meru-Nairobi highway Sunday evening.

The celebrated doctor was on her way to pick up her appointment letter after securing a county job with the County Government of Taita Taveta.

The 29-year-old was working at Life Care hospital in Meru on a contract basis.

Mwandisha is among 33 passengers who died as a result of the accident on Sunday evening.

The bus belonging to Modern Coast had 45 passengers on board before the accident. Ten of the passengers who survived the accident are nursing wounds in various hospitals.

Her mother Evangeline Mwandisha says her daughter notified her of her journey before boarding the ill-fated bus.

”She called me before boarding and she promised to call upon arrival. I was worried when I woke up at 6am and realised that her phone was not going through after failing to notify me,” Evangeline said.

She added, ”I was a hopeful parent, my daughter had many dreams to achieve. She was on the right path and her untimely death is such a big blow.

Mary, the fourth born in a family of five, had just secured a permanent job after several attempts before her untimely death.

The deceased brother Medline Mwandisha said the family learned about her death after confirming with the Modern Coast booking office in Kilifi.

”After learning of the ill-fated bus, we were all desperately trying to contact her but her calls were not going through. We went to the county booking office and upon confirming, we found out that she had booked seat number two,” he said.

The other sibling, Richard Mwandisha, says the death of her sister was a big blow to the family and society at large.

“She oozed compassion from every pore of her body, and she was just well-loved. She was the kind of person who would give the shirt off her back to somebody in need,” Richard said.

Her brilliance in studies earned her a scholarship from Kesho Kenya to study Bachelor of Medicine degree at the University of Nairobi from where she graduated in 2020.

“She was always striving to do better which ultimately improved the lives of the patients she cared for,” said Anne Kialo, a friend of the deceased. 

After graduating from the University of Nairobi in 2020, the deceased proceeded on her internship at Taita Taveta County hospital for one year, worked at Tsavo hospital in Voi which is private for three months then went to life care hospital Meru and worked for three months till her demise.

Mwandisha did her interview last week and luckily she qualified for the job that she was to start on August 1.

Burial arrangements are underway as the family prepares to travel for Nairobi for the same.