Mama Emily Were, widow of Captain George Were, has recounted the heartbreak of learning about her husband’s death through social media, an experience she said left her struggling to process the sudden loss.
George Were was the pilot of the helicopter that crashed in Nandi County on 28 February 2026, killing six people, including Emurua Dikirr MP Johana Ng’eno.
Speaking during her husband’s burial on Saturday, Emily described the moment she realised the unthinkable.
“I had the phone in my hand and then started seeing news,” she said.
“When I realised it was him on social media, my first instinct was to call my children because, the way social media is, they were going to see it within the next 10 minutes or so.”
She said she first instructed her son, Sammy, to call his brother Joseph, who was very close to their father.
She had planned to call her daughter Stacy, but before she could, Joseph had already informed her.
“When I called her, she was bitter that she was hearing it from her brother and did not talk to me for two days,” Emily said.
Standing alongside Stacy at the podium, her voice broke under the weight of sorrow as she added, “…But Mama, I believe we are now good; you understand why that happened.”
Grief was etched on her daughter’s face, her quiet sobs reflecting deep sorrow and heartbreak.
Emily painted a portrait of her late husband as a man who cherished peace and family.
“Our children used to call him Mpenda Amani (one who loves peace),” she said.
George Were loved rhumba and devoted much of his life to his children, she revealed.
Their marriage, she said, was not an easy decision.
She first met George in 1993 and admitted it was hard to convince herself to marry a military man. Even her brother initially struggled to accept George, but in time, he grew to love him.
The tragic helicopter crash claimed the lives of six individuals: Johana Ng’eno – Emurua Dikirr MP, George Were – the pilot, Nicholas (Nick) Kosgei / Nick Koskey – the MP’s personal photographer, Amos Kipngetich Rotich – a Kenya Forest Service officer, Robert Kipkoech Keter (Carlos Keter) – a teacher, and Wycliffe Kiprotich Rono – a protocol officer with Narok County government.
The helicopter, registered 5Y-DSB, crashed and burst into flames in the Chepkiep area of Mosop, Nandi County.
Friends and family who attended the burial described George Were as a gentle, disciplined, and loving man whose death has left a void in their lives.