Doctor reveals Raila’s last moments, what killed him

__________________

Doctors at Devamatha Hospital in India, where former Kenyan prime minister Raila Odinga was rushed after suffering a cardiac arrest on Wednesday, October 15, 2025, morning, have revealed the circumstances surrounding his last moments at the facility.

Cardiologist Dr. Sr. Alphons, who was among the team attending to him, while speaking to ANI news, South Asia’s leading multimedia news agency, said they made every effort to resuscitate him but were ultimately unsuccessful.

“Despite our continued cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and other measures, we could not make him survive,” she said in an interview.

Raila reportedly travelled to India on October 4 after suffering a minor stroke and was undergoing therapy at Ayurvedic therapy at the Sreedhareeyam Ayurvedic Eye Hospital and Research Centre in Koothattukulam, Ernakulam.

According to family and friends, he had already shown signs of recovery and started walking normally. On the fateful morning, Raila, in the company of his personal doctor and bodyguard, went out for a walk at about 8:30am.

Videos released show Raila walking normally. However, it was during the walk that he suddenly collapsed, suffering a cardiac arrest.

Medical personnel at Sreedhareeyam quickly administered CPR, an emergency procedure used during cardiac or respiratory arrest that involves chest compressions, often combined with artificial ventilation. He was later rushed to Devamatha Hospital in nearby Kochi.

Alphons said Odinga was brought to the facility’s emergency unit at around 8:20am (Indian Time) after collapsing during his routine morning walk near an Ayurvedic hospital close to Devamatha Hospital.

“He was brought to our emergency medicine department with the history of a sudden collapse during his morning walk. His doctor and security team had already initiated CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) before arrival,” she said.

“Upon arrival, we continued active CPR, performed emergency intubation to secure the airway, and transferred him to the ICU with full medical support.”

She noted that initially, there was no pulse or blood pressure, even upon palpation.

Sr Alphons indicated that after continued resuscitation, a brief rhythm was detected on the monitor showing ST elevation on the ECG, alongside regional wall motion abnormalities, indicating reduced movement in the heart’s anterior wall.

“This suggested hypokinesia, or reduced motion in that artery territory. We stabilised him with IV fluids and administered a clot-dissolving injection, reteplase, to address possible coronary blockage,” she said.

She further disclosed that Odinga exhibited significant swelling in his right leg and that information from his attending doctor indicated he had been managing diabetes, hypertension, chronic kidney disease and a previous right lower limb DVT for which an IVC filter had been inserted.

“Recently, he had also suffered a thin subdural hematoma, which was reviewed by a neurosurgeon last Saturday. After consulting with the neurosurgeon who accompanied the patient from Sree Tarim Hospital, we proceeded with thrombolysis using reteplase and continued CPR from 8:00 am until 9:52 am despite all ACLS protocols being followed,” she said.

“In spite of our very sincere and continued efforts, we could not revive him. We are very sorry to inform you that he is no more with us and our very sincere condolences and prayers for his family and for the Kenyan people.” Alphons said.