Flash floods claim over 130 lives, government discloses
At least 132 people have so far died as a result of the flash floods and more than 350,000 displaced, the government has disclosed.
The government made the revelation as the rains continued to pound various parts of the country, causing destruction running into hundreds of millions of shillings.
In Nakuru, the body of a 26-year-old boda boda rider that had been swept away by floods in Njoro was yesterday retrieved by divers four days after his disappearance. Bagaria Chief David Mugekenyi said Joseph Nderitu was swept away by floods on Friday afternoon as he was crossing River Bagaria on foot.
Giving an update on the ongoing floods, Government spokesman Cyrus Oguna said the State is providing the necessary relief to help restore the livelihoods of those affected.
Assessing damage
He said a multi-agency team drawn from county government, Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), World Food Programme is assessing the extent of damage on infrastructure and undertaking repairs.
The heavy rains have seen most roads in Nairobi flooded with the most affected areas being Wetlands, South C, Thika Road, Parklands and Kilimani. The Thika Superhighway was yesterday flooded with the section between Survey and Muthaiga being nearly impassable.
City Hall has deployed disaster management officers in all the 17 sub-counties.
In Murang’a, farmers in upper Githambo, Kiharu, have been left counting losses after a landslide swept away tea bushes yesterday morning. About 2,000 tea bushes were swept away to a nearby river, however, no casualties were reported.
As the heavy rains continued to pound, residents of Konoin in Bomet have asked the county administration to repair or build a bridge at Kiptunoi area. They said the existing one linking Kimari Tea Estate and Mogogosiek is now dangerous after Kiptunoi River burst its banks.
In Kisumu, some 220 households have been displaced as a result of rising water levels in Lake Victoria, the county government said yesterday.
Residents of Ombaka area in Kakola village are the hardest hit. The county government has set up an evacuation centre at Nyamasao Primary School amid projections of torrential rains in coming days.
In Machakos, a 65-year-old woman died on Monday in a first mudslide-related incident. The victim reportedly stuck in mud neck-deep after a dam broke its banks causing a mudslide.
Kalama sub-county commissioner Virginia Njeri said the deceased was wading in shallow water when she drifted into waterlogged soil.
Meanwhile in Tana River, County Commissioner Oningoi Ole Sosio said four people died while over 20,000 others were displaced by floods.
Speaking to the press in his Hola office yesterday, Sosio said the ongoing rains had caused destruction on farms with crops being submerged in floods.
The weatherman has cautioned people to be vigilant forecasting that the rains will last until the end of this month. Reporting by Alvin Mwangi, Wangari Njuguna, Winstone Chiseremi, Noven Owiti and Rueben Mwangangi
