Trail of d***h, destruction as heavy rains leave Nairobi submerged in deluge

Nairobians yesterday woke up to, not a City in the Sun, but a city in floods after heavy rains pounded the Kenyan capital and its environs overnight, leaving at least six people dead, thousands marooned in their houses and several roads impassable.

The rains which started shortly after 9pm Tuesday night in most parts of the capital and neighbouring Kiambu, Machakos and Kajiado counties and lasted several hours left thousands of houses, from the informal settlements of Mathare Valley and Kibra, to the affluent neighborhoods of Runda and South C, submerged in water.

Videos of whole families perched on rooftops of their houses in various parts of the city and the neighboring counties went viral as rescue efforts got underway, led by the National Police, the Kenya Red Cross and the respective county governments.

Nairobi governor Johnson Sakaja put the death toll from the overnight rains at four people, a figure which was, however, discounted by county police boss Adamson Bungei.

“An estimated 60,000 people mostly women and children in Nairobi have been severely affected following devastating flash floods which hit the city,” said Sakaja at a press conference after leading a rescue mission in parts of the capital.

“Unfortunately, we have lost four lives, and the search is on to locate six others people who have been reported missing. The following areas have been adversely affected: Kibra, Lindi, Mathare 4A and Mathare North, Baba Dogo, Githurai and Zimmerman. This morning together with Members of Parliament in Nairobi and local leadership toured several areas amongst them Mathare, Utalii in Ruaraka area which has been the hardest hit by the rains,” he added.

Two other people were confirmed dead in Athi River, Machakos county following the heavy rains. Athi River Deputy County Commissioner Patrick Mwangi, who led rescue operations in the area, said his team was yet to establish the exact number of families affected by the floods.

According to Sakaja, areas of Kibra, Lindi, Mathare4A, Baba Dogo, Kasarani and Githurai are the worst affected areas.

“ We are on the brink of a humanitarian crises and effective measures should be put in place immediately. Nairobi is one of the counties hard hit by these floods and hence there is need for all of us to work closely. This is the time to put aside our political differences and focus on the needs of the common mwananchi,” he said.

Burst riverbanks

He attributed the devastation to Ngong River bursting its banks.

“The bursting of the Ngong River banks has affected many areas across the city especially downstream including the flooding of Mbagathi Roundabout, flooding in Ectoville Industrial Estate in Mukuru kwa Rueben Ward and flooding in Mwiki Ward on Eastern bypass,” he said.

He, at the same time, attributed the flooding in Westlands and its environs to Mau Mau River bursting its banks.

“The bursting of its riverbanks has seen churches and residential houses flooded in Westlands sub county,” said Sakaja. He added that the county government had initiated plans to address the situation.

But Bungei, in a statement, could only confirm the death of one Stanley Ochieng, who was swept away by the raging waters yesterday morning in his house in Mathare North Area Three near Mathare North Primary School.

Bungei also confirmed that hundreds of people remained marooned and several houses submerged as a result of the heavy rains.

“We can only confirm about one death in Mathare North Area Three, but the rains have caused a lot of damage,” Bungei told People Daily.

But residents said that besides Ochieng, three other boda boda riders were killed by raging waters in Mwiki area.

One of the riders was said to have been swept away at around 1am while the other two met their fate in the wee hours as they attempted to cross the flooded Mwiki River.

Houses submerged

In Mathare North, Ochieng’s brother-in-law Japhet Maluki said their houses were submerged when the heavy rains pounded the city on Tuesday night.

“Residents were woken up in the night by the flash floods that had submerged all the houses. As they fled to higher grounds, my brother-in-law returned to his house for some documents. It was then he was electrocuted in the darkness and his body was swept away by the waters,” Maluki said.

The Red Cross reported that it had rescued 18 people who were marooned in their houses in Mradi, Mathare 4A area.

“Eighteen people, including 11 adults and 7 children, have just been rescued in Mradi, Mathare 4A, after becoming stranded due to floodwaters caused by heavy rains last night in Nairobi,” the Kenya Red Cross reported.

A section of Kariobangi residents watched helplessly as a man was swept away by raging Mathare River yesterday.

Residents used ropes to pull out stranded neighbours from their houses, which had been, submerged in the fast rising waters. In Starehe sub-county in the Kiambiu informal settlement, at least 10 households have been affected.

“We already have an excavator clearing garbage that is interfering with the flow of storm waters,” the statement added.

A bridge in Nairobi’s Mukuru-Kayaba Slum in South B was swept away.

A statement from the Nairobi county government stated that in Loyangalani, Isaac Gathanju and Convent roads, flooding was caused by encroachment on water wayleaves.

“All citizens should remain vigilant and take necessary precautions to safeguard themselves and their property, especially those living near riverbanks. Please heed all warnings and advisories issued by the relevant authorities and avoid unnecessary travel in flood-prone areas,” read the statement.

In Kitengela, Kajiado county, transport to and from Nairobi was paralysed for over two hours after Athi River burst its banks, rendering the Nairobi-Namanga highway impassable.

Motorists heading to Kitengela from Nairobi and those from Nairobi heading to Kitengela were left stranded after police barricaded the road to avert any mishaps.

Stories by Samuel Kariuki, Christine Musa, Oliver Musembi and Alvin Mwangi