A 24-year-old man from Kiarugu sub-location in Mutira ward, Kirinyaga Central sub-county died instantly after jumping into a 60-foot-deep well.

The reasons why the young man identified as Nahason Mutugi decided to take his life remain unclear.

The mission to retrieve the body from the deep well was led by the Kirinyaga County officer in charge of fire and disaster management John Kiama.

Kiama noted that the deceased had attempted to commit suicide several times in the past.

“He has been trying to commit suicide several times but members of the public have always intervened, unfortunately after managing to outwit them and threw himself into the well and died,” Kiama said.

“For a person of this age to reach the point of committing suicide by hanging or throwing self into a well, means that mental health issues are a great challenge within the county, yet that is not the solution to social issues affecting our society,” he added.

Kiama further called on the youths to lay a better foundation for prosperity via patience and hard work regardless of whether one is employed or not.

“After completing school and failing to secure a job, most youths fall into depression which in most cases results in such incidents forgetting that that’s not the end. You can engage in agriculture and still make it in life,” he said.

Kiama additionally urged the clergy as well as mental health professionals to play their role in providing guidance, counselling and mentoring the youths to avoid such incidents in the near future.

“Church leaders and mental health professionals should assist in psycho-social support in the villages targeting youths who easily get separated because their only aim after school is getting rich when that is not how it is in real life,” he said.