A family in Kitui County is in mourning after a joyous wedding countdown ended in tragedy, following the death of the bride-to-be in a road accident.
Jackline Kasau, 42, a teacher at St Mary’s Kinyambu Girls’ Secondary School, died on Saturday night while travelling home from her dowry payment ceremony.
She was in the company of her 10-year-old daughter, her future mother-in-law from Kibwezi, and a neighbour. All three also lost their lives.
Video taken just a day earlier shows Kasau dancing during the celebration, surrounded by friends and relatives as she prepared for her wedding, set for next Saturday.
Relatives described her as a loving and dependable figure, deeply rooted in her community. “She was like a mother to me. She took care of me when I was in school, so coming to terms with her death is very hard for me,” said her younger sister, Jacinta Kilonzo.
“It is sad to see the WhatsApp groups where we were making the final wedding arrangements turned into burial planning forums.”
The accident happened at around 11pm on the Kibwezi-Kitui Road in Makueni County. According to Kibwezi base commander Morris Situma, three people died at the scene. Two others were rushed to Kibwezi AMREF Hospital, where Kasau later died. The only survivor, a cousin of her fiancé, sustained minor injuries and was discharged.
Police believe the driver lost control after speeding, causing the car to roll.
Authorities said the tragedy was one of five accidents reported in the region that night, highlighting the ongoing road safety crisis. For Kasau’s family, however, the statistics mean little. What should have been a week of final preparations for her wedding has instead become a week of grief.
