Nakuru county mortuary, popularly known as ‘Kwa Jack’ is a temporary home to many before they are interred.

In fact, whenever a person is reported to be missing in Nakuru city, relatives are always advised to have a final check at ‘Kwa Jack’ mortuary situated within Nakuru CBD opposite St. Christopher Anglican Church Milimani.

It is also here that bodies collected by police in road accidents and other mysterious deaths are taken for post-mortem.

But how did the facility that currently handles 1,700 bodies annually become christened ‘Kwa Jack’?

Well, Mtaa Wangu has established that the name originated from a famous mortician, Jackson Kiio who worked at the defunct Municipal Mortuary for 33 years before his death.

Many who took bodies of their beloved ones at the facility would always refer to it as ‘Kwa Jack’ as Jackson was the image of the premise as he also lived at a servants’ quarter within the facility.

Bernard Ndonga- a senior resident of Nakuru reveals that the late Jackson became famous through his service to the dead bodies as he also gave hope to the bereaved families.

According to Ndonga, despite the stigma that was there then about people who work in mortuaries, Jackson seemed to love his work so much until his death.

“His name became famous as he was the only person at the facility to receive bodies and inquiries from bereaved families,” stated Ndonga.

Though Kiio died in 1995, the name ‘Kwa Jack’ has stuck on the Mortuary to date.

A dedicated mortician he was that upon his death, his son Titus Kithiya inherited his job and continued serving the residents of Nakuru during emotional moments of losing their loved ones.

Tito, as was popularly known among locals, died a year ago.

With the inception of devolution, the ‘Kwa Jack’ is now known as the Nakuru County Mortuary though the name ‘Kwa Jack’ cannot be deleted from the lips of the locals.

The mortuary just like before has been facing a number of challenges, key among them the congestion of bodies.

At many occasions, the County Government of Nakuru through the Public Health Department has been making appeal to residents to help identify several bodies before the county can take action of interring them as per the law.

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How Nakuru county mortuary was christened ‘Kwa Jack’

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Pristone Mambili