Three more dead in Kenya floods

Three more people have died as a result of floods in parts of Kenya, according to the latest statistics from the Kenya Red Cross and government officials.

Kenya Red Cross communications director Titus Mung’ou on Saturday told the Nation a woman died in Marsabit North after being swept away by floods.

A man and his daughter were swept away as they tried to cross Isinya River in Kajiado North district on Thursday.

Area district commissioner Mr Mwangi Kahiro said the man had attempted to carry his daughter across the swollen river but succumbed to the raging waters. The bodies were swept 10 kilometres downstream, he said.

This brings the number of the dead from the floods to nine.

And the Red Cross is also warning that the situation in the Tana Delta could become critical if the rains are to continue and the dams on the Seven Forks Hydroelectric project get full.

“The water could be released downstream and the people on the Tana Delta will therefore need to be on the lookout if the rains continue,” said Mr Mung’ou on the telephone.

He said reports from the Lake Victoria and Budalangi flood monitoring systems indicate rivers in that area are close to overflowing their banks. He said the rivers are about 0.2 metres away from breaking their banks and residents would have to move to higher ground immediately.

Water from the Cherangany Hills and Mt Elgon are the main cause of the river’s perennial flooding.

The number of those who have been left homeless also increased after about 70 families lost their semi-permanent houses to floods in Migori and Uriri districts in South Nyanza.

The residents of Oruba, Pand Pieri, Nyasare and Rapogi estates were left without shelter after their mud-walled houses were brought down by the heavy rains that have pounded the region for the last three days.

He urged area residents to avoid any swollen rivers.

Residents of Mandera also require assistance as the town’s entire water system had been destroyed by the floods after River Dauwa in Ethiopia broke its banks.

Mr Mung’ou said toilets had collapsed in the area. Red Cross would from Saturday begin sing a helicopter to reach the distressed in those areas, he said.

In Garbatulla, five people who had been missing by the end of the day on Friday were found perched on trees on Saturday. More than 200 livestock have died in the area from the flooding.
But the situation is yet to reach the alarming levels, said Mr Mung’ou as the figures of those affected remain below 2,000.

Families that had been displaced by the floods in January are however yet to go back to their homes and are still living in camps, he said, meaning more rains in the area would make it worse for them.

In Migori, the flood victims who escaped unhurt sought refuge in the homes of relatives and friends as they made plans to rebuild their structures.

The region also experienced flash floods on some roads and estates.

Murram roads leading to the Lake Victoria beaches of Muhuru were flooded, paralysing transport for hours to the chagrin of stranded commuters and fish mongers.

Water levels in Rivers Kuja and Migori that had dropped drastically shot up immediately following the heavy downpour.

The government has issued flood alerts in parts of Coast, Eastern, Western, Rift Valley and Nyanza provinces and sent disaster preparedness teams to parts of the North Rift that are thought to be susceptible to landslides.

On Thursday, Kenya Army and Kenya Police helicopters, together with those from Lewa Conservancy, were deployed to help evacuate people stranded in tourist lodges in the Samburu area due to flooding

Reported by Casper Waithaka, Elisha Otieno and John Ngirachu