A 38-year-old man has recounted his horrifying experience of being pronounced dead at a leading hospital and lying in the mortuary for two(2) days. 

AVDelta News on Tuesday visited Jonathan Mutua at his home in Katine, Matungulu sub-County.

Mutua had been pronounced dead by a doctor at Kenyatta National Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit after a quarry accident left him with a broken spine, crushed ribs, and a punctured lung. 

On the third day, as his body lay among others in the morgue, he woke up.

“I felt a sharp pain in my ribs and my throat was dry. I asked for water,” Mutua recalled.

“When I stretched my hand, I touched a woman lying next to me. She did not respond. Her hand dropped on my head, and I thought she had slapped me.”

Confused, Mutua looked around and saw name tags tied to the feet of the dead.

He whispered a prayer, asking God to rescue him from what he called "a foul-smelling place of death and thirst."

Moments later, three mortuary attendants entered the room.

Seeing him move, they screamed “Shindwe!” and fled.

When they returned, armed with metal bars, they beat him up, thinking he was a ghost.

“I am a servant of God! Why do you want to kill me?” he shouted.

“Where do you serve, priest?” one asked.

“At Tala Parish,” Mutua replied.

The men stopped, carried him out, and rushed him back to the hospital reception. Doctors confirmed he was alive and took him back to the ward.

Back in Katine, his family had already dug a grave and were planning his burial.

The funeral had been delayed only because of a pending hospital bill.

The story of Jonathan Mutua dates back to January 4, 2022.

Back in Katine, his family had already dug a grave and were planning his burial.

The funeral had been delayed only because of a pending hospital bill.

Mutua’s story began on January 4, 2022, when a quarry wall collapsed on him and four colleagues.

One man died on the spot. The rest were rescued by well-wishers, but the process left them with more injuries. Mutua was first taken to Kangundo Level 4 Hospital, then referred to Kenyatta National Hospital.

“The machines showed I was gone,” he said. “The doctor switched them off to attend to accident victims who had just arrived. That’s how I ended up in the mortuary.”

Mutua spent almost 11 months in hospital. A well-wisher eventually cleared his Sh1.4 million bill.

Now back home, he spends his days nursing his paralysed body while caring for his ailing mother. The two survive on donations from well-wishers.

“I have forgiven the mortuary attendants,” Mutua said. 

“They came to my home and asked for forgiveness. I hold no grudge.”