Two people have been killed and a house torched in Jimo East Location, Nyakach sub-county, following clashes between two communities living on the border of Kisumu and Kericho counties.

Nine other people are recuperating at Nyakach Sub-County Hospital after sustaining spear and arrow injuries in the Saturday night incident. Several families spent the night in the cold, while others camped at Ndori primary school after the tension escalated.

According to Samwel Alolo, one of the affected residents, tension started building up on Thursday after a group of youths raided Kasaye village in Jimo East Location of Nyakach and drove off with herds of goats, claiming that one of their cattle had been stolen.

Alolo said efforts to trace the stolen goats, which were driven into the Soin Sigowet area in Kericho county, were met with retaliatory attacks, resulting in the deaths.

He said a group of youths armed with arrows descended on the village, leaving behind a trail of destruction and making off with herds of goats, chickens and ducks.

Alolo accused the Anti-Stock-Theft Unit police stationed at the border of laxity, saying they have failed to rein in the thugs.

A contingent of police officers drawn from different units has been deployed in the area to quell tension and restore peace.

Acting Kisumu County Commissioner Hussein Alassow Hussein directed the security officers on both sides of the border to enhance patrols and flush out those involved in the attacks.

“We are making every effort to ensure that all the goats and cows that have been stolen are recovered. We also want you to produce the one cow stolen from the other side so that we can return it,” he said.

Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong’o condemned the killings, calling out security agencies for failing to contain the tension in the area.