A Kenyan mother has recounted the emotional and financial hardship she allegedly endured after her husband left her struggling to pay hospital bills following childbirth, only for her to later discover signs that he was preparing to marry another woman.

Salome Wambui, a mother of two from Njoro in Nakuru County, Kenya, said she moved to Nairobi in 2024 to build a home with her husband after dating him for about a year. However, she told Kenyan news outlet TUKO.co.ke that their relationship deteriorated during her pregnancy, leaving her increasingly isolated and struggling to meet basic needs.

According to Salome, her husband began spending less time at home after taking up work driving public service vehicles along the Kitengela route. She said he eventually visited only about once a week and declined her suggestion that they relocate closer to his workplace.

The situation became more difficult when Salome was five months pregnant and lost her grandmother, who had raised her following her mother’s death. She said her husband did not attend the burial and later told her he intended to move out.

Having left her job in Nakuru when she relocated to Nairobi, Salome said she had no steady income to support herself as her pregnancy progressed. Her sister became an important source of assistance, helping her with food and other basic needs.

Salome said she began experiencing frequent bleeding when she was pregnant, raising concerns about her health and that of her unborn child. She eventually gave birth about a month before her expected delivery date after doctors induced labour.

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The most distressing experience, according to her account, came when she needed money to pay the hospital admission deposit. She said she contacted her husband, but he claimed he had been arrested in Athi River and did not provide the money she needed.

With the hospital bill still outstanding, Salome said she approached a woman who operated an M-Pesa shop in the building and borrowed money to pay the deposit. She gave birth that night.

Her husband reportedly visited the following day, saw the newborn and left without providing money for the immediate expenses.

Salome said she subsequently had to borrow more money to settle the discharge bill and meet basic needs for herself and the baby. She also discovered that some household belongings, including a television, gas cylinder and cooker, were missing from their home.

According to her account, her husband returned when the baby was about six weeks old and brought back the television. They lived together for approximately another month before he left again, later taking the television away.

As the debts accumulated, Salome said she eventually sold her refrigerator to repay people who had assisted her during her hospital stay. She recalled that her husband questioned her decision to sell the appliance without consulting him, despite the financial difficulties she said she had faced.

Her suspicions about another woman reportedly grew after she noticed that her husband was protective of his phone. Salome said she later saw messages between him and another woman’s mother that appeared to indicate money was being sent following requests.

She contrasted the alleged financial support with what she received during her pregnancy, saying her husband gave her about KSh150 a day and did not buy supplies for the expected baby.

Salome said she sometimes skipped meals to save money for baby clothes, relying on her sister and other people for assistance.

The situation took another turn about a month after her husband left for good. Salome said she came across a photograph he had posted showing him dressed in matching outfits with another woman. She suspected that a dowry ceremony had taken place, although the details of the reported ceremony were not independently established in her account.

She also said she later learnt that her husband had converted to Islam and changed his name.

Salome, who had worked in different jobs in Nakuru before moving to Nairobi, said she had expected marriage to offer stability and an opportunity to raise a family. Instead, she said, she was left to care for her children while depending heavily on her sister’s support.

Despite the experience, Salome said she did not want to resume the relationship, explaining that the future she had hoped to build with her husband had not materialised.

Her account highlights the financial pressure, emotional distress and practical challenges she says she experienced during pregnancy, childbirth and the breakdown of her marriage. She is now focused on raising her children and rebuilding her life.

At least 139 migrants, including 15 children, have died after an overcrowded boat capsized off the coast of Djibouti while carrying passengers towards Yemen, in one of the deadliest recent disasters along the migration route to Gulf countries.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM), a United Nations agency, said the vessel was carrying more than 300 people when it overturned near Guhere, north of Obock, during the night of October 8–9, 2026.

Initial reports put the death toll at 109, including 15 children, with more than 116 people missing. Subsequent reporting by Reuters and the Associated Press cited an updated toll of at least 139 dead, with about 84 people still missing. The figures may continue to change as authorities verify recoveries and survivors.

The boat was reportedly carrying around 305 people, according to the IOM’s later account. At least 82 people survived the disaster, although early reports gave a slightly different survivor count.

The 15 children among the initially reported dead comprised nine girls and six boys. The IOM also reported that 52 of the bodies recovered were men and 42 were women.

The vessel capsized shortly after setting out on the perilous journey across the waters separating Djibouti and Yemen. Survivors said the boat was overcrowded, while the IOM described the incident as a devastating reminder of the dangers confronting people attempting the crossing.

The agency’s Chief of Mission in Djibouti, Alexandre Coissac, said its teams were working with local authorities to provide emergency assistance to survivors and affected families.

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Djiboutian authorities continued search-and-rescue operations as concerns mounted over the fate of those still missing. Local authorities were also providing medical care and arranging burials for recovered bodies.

The IOM said survivors were receiving assistance at its migrant response centre in Obock, including healthcare, food and psychosocial support.

The tragedy highlights the risks faced by migrants travelling along the Eastern Route, which connects the Horn of Africa to Yemen and, for many, onward destinations in the Gulf region.

Many people undertaking the journey are from Ethiopia and Somalia. They seek employment and better living conditions, while others are fleeing insecurity, conflict, drought and other hardships.

Despite the dangers, migrants continue to cross the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the hope of reaching wealthier Gulf countries. The journey exposes them to shipwrecks, trafficking, exploitation and other serious threats.

The risks have been compounded by instability in Yemen, where fighting continues between the internationally recognised government and Houthi forces, alongside wider regional tensions. Meanwhile, renewed conflict and difficult living conditions in parts of Ethiopia have added to the pressures driving people to leave.

According to the IOM, more than 900 migrants died or went missing along the Eastern Route in 2025, as the number of people attempting the journey increased.

The UN agency has called for greater support for Djibouti’s response, including search-and-rescue operations and emergency assistance for migrants.

The latest shipwreck has renewed calls for safer and legal migration pathways, as humanitarian agencies warn that people will continue to risk dangerous sea crossings while seeking security and economic opportunities.

As recovery operations continue, the final death toll may rise further as authorities verify missing-person reports and establish the number of people who were aboard the vessel.