Nairobi storm claims one more life

One more person died as Nairobi residents woke up to the reality of the destruction left behind by a heavy rainstorm.

The man, whose death brings to two the number of people who perished in the storm, slipped as he repaired his iron-sheet house at the city’s Mukuru Kaiyaba slum and was swept by the raging waters of Ngong River.

Embakasi police boss Rono Bunei Thursday led a recovery team that found the body of the victim on the banks of the river at Mukuru-Kingstone slum, two kilometres away from this house.

The first person died along Landhies Road on Wednesday evening after strong winds, which accompanied the rains, pulled down a number of trees that hit a public service bus.

Fierce winds

The sudden rains, which were accompanied by fierce winds resulting in a rainstorm, uprooted trees and billboard signs along main roads.
On Thursday morning, city residents were busy repairing the damage caused.

Along Mombasa road, workmen were busy cutting down trees which fell on vehicles at a car dealers yard. In Southlands, some residents of Jonathan Ng’eno Estate were clearing water from their houses after floods broke perimeter fences.

At Muthurwa Estate, trees which had fallen on the roofs of some houses were also removed. And at the nearby Machakos country bus station, workers from Kenya Power and Lighting Company were erecting a power line which had been uprooted by the fierce storm.

In a statement, KPLC said power supply in parts of Nairobi was interrupted after a heavy storm affected installations.

Parts of the central business district were affected after the storm broke poles of a 66 kilovolts (kV) line serving Jeevanjee substation. In addition, a billboard fell on a 66 kV line on Mbagathi Way, disrupting electricity supply to Ngong Town, Kiserian, Rongai and Magadi Soda.

At Mukuru Fuata Nyayo slum, 11 goats were reported to have been swept by the floods. Location development committee chairman Patrick Maina Shaolin said more than 200 houses were left roofless.

Houses were flooded and residents had to flee to higher grounds for safety.

According to Pastor Joshua Chege, Tumaini Church in Kanaro, lost property worth more than Sh400,000.

Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department has predicted a wet Christmas for most areas in the country. Senior meteorologist Samuel Mwangi however said that the rains would not reach Wednesday’s magnitude.

Reported by Sammy Kimatu, Mike Mwaniki and Peter Mwai