40 Patients Escape Mental Hospital In Kenya, 30 Still On The Loose

It is being reported that 40 mentally ill residents at a Kenyan mental hospital escaped from the premises after overpowering the guards there. So far, only10 have been recovered.

"We are now talking of 30 mental patients who are not back. Some have come back on their own volition while some were captured and brought back by their relatives," Divisional Police Chief Samuel Anampiu said.

Apparently, the break out may have been an organized effort. In total, 75 patients either escaped or attempted to. The hoard of patients overpowered the guards at the mental ward before escaping to the outer premises of the facility.

"They must have strategized. It is not possible that, without proper planning, 75 people can break two doors and more than half of them run away," Anampiu is quoted as saying.

From there, 40 of the patients were able to escape while 35 were eventually subdued by an overwhelmed staff. The patients who did escape made their way into the heart of the Malthare slum in Nairobi.

"Many scaled over the wall and went through Mathare area and a few confident ones used the main gate. When they are traced they should be brought back for their medication," Anampiu said, adding that all those who escaped were men.

Of the ten who have returned to the facility, eight did so because their family returned then while the other two came back under their own volition. The mental hospital has stated that those patients still on the loose are a danger to both themselves and others, and need to come back immediately.

The break out at the mental hospital was unusual because of the scope of the organization. The hospital has said that breakout attempts have occurred before but generally only involved a handful of people.