NAIROBI, Kenya – A close friend of Omusula WaOmusula, an AMREF Flying Doctors nurse who died in Thursday’s plane crash, has paid an emotional tribute, describing her as “an extraordinary nurse, my sister, my anchor, my person.”
In a moving message posted on social media, Alinda Senje recalled their shared journey from a small village in Butere to the global stage, bound by a friendship of more than two decades.
The two met in nursing school, overcoming financial and personal struggles to pursue their dream careers.
“We faced closed doors, empty pockets, and moments where hope seemed like a flicker in the distance. But we kept going,” Senje wrote, noting that a scholarship through ACCESS marked the start of their professional rise.
WaOmusula’s career spanned from bedside nursing to intensive care expertise, eventually becoming part of AMREF’s elite medical evacuation team. Friends and colleagues knew her for her sharp clinical skills, mentoring spirit, and unshakable dedication to patients.
But to Senje, she was much more than a colleague. “Every milestone she hit, I cheered like a sister would,” she said. “In scrubs or in a code blue, you wanted Jane on your team.”
Senje described WaOmusula as a voracious reader, a fashion lover, a sports enthusiast, and a devoted family member.
She also recounted how, in 2022, WaOmusula stood by her through a battle with depression — visiting her daily in hospital and rallying their families for support.
The two last spoke just days before the crash, when WaOmusula invited her to extend a trip to South Africa so they could meet in Cape Town — a reunion that never happened.
On August 7, Senje learned of the tragedy from AMREF’s public statement.
“At 8:46pm, my world crashed,” she wrote. “Just as your star began to shine its brightest, death dimmed it. You died doing what you loved — serving humanity.”
The plane crash has claimed an as-yet-unknown number of lives, and investigations are underway. For Senje, the loss is deeply personal.
“You lived well, Jane — so unapologetically. You loved hard. You left too soon,” she wrote. “I will never be the same.”
