Journalists allowed into horrifying attack scene

An army officer on patrol at Garissa University College on April 3, 2015. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE |  NATION MEDIA GROUP

In Summary

• The college was closed after the Thursday dawn attack.
• Floors are covered in blood.

By NATION CORRESPONDENT
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Journalists were given access to Garissa University College on Monday for the first time since Al-Shabaab terrorists attacked it and killed 148 people.

The college was closed after the Thursday dawn attack, the worst since the 1998 Nairobi US embassy bombing.

At the Garissa college, pavements have patches of blood, while the air is filled with a putrid smell.

The university has only one gate. It is surrounded by a barbed wire fence, which seems to have made escape difficult for fleeing students. Many of the survivors had injuries inflicted by the fence.

Elgon A hostel is where most killings happened, according to police. Its floor is covered in blood .

The attackers are said to have locked exit and entrance doors, making it impossible for the students to escape, then taunted the victims before killing them.

The attackers forced the victims to call their relatives before they were killed, according to the students who escaped.

The hostel is also where special forces gunned down four terrorists. In the two-storey building, books and other items are scattered everywhere.

The building’s roof is riddled with bullet holes while its windows are shattered. On top of the second floor, some clothes that had been washed before the attack still hang.

Speaking to journalists at the college, Garissa County Commissioner Njenga Miiri said all doors to the hostels, lectures halls and other buildings at the institution had been locked to safeguard the students’ belongings.

“We are planning to take inventory of all property left behind by students, with the support of the college management, to ensure what is found here is safely delivered to their respective owners,” he said.