Downpour slows down coastal city as houses, streets flooded
A trader cycles through the rain water along the Nyerere Avenue in Mombasa on April 14, 2016. Houses were submerged and roads flooded after heavy rains pounded the Mombasa County and its environs on Wednesday night and for the better part of Thursday. PHOTO | KEVIN ODIT | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Houses were submerged and roads flooded after heavy rains pounded the county and its environs on Wednesday night and for the better part of Thursday.
- The day-long downpour affected operations at the Mombasa port, mainly the conventional cargo section that handles bulk cargo.
- Operations were reportedly slow as three ships discharged fertiliser in the section.
- Many roads, especially in the estates and the central business district of Mombasa City, were rendered impassable with Kisauni, Likoni and the upmarket Nyali most affected.
- Streets, shops and hotels in the CBD remained flooded until late afternoon.
Houses were submerged and roads flooded after heavy rains pounded the county and its environs on Wednesday night and for the better part of Thursday.
The day-long downpour affected operations at the Mombasa port, mainly the conventional cargo section that handles bulk cargo.
Operations were reportedly slow as three ships discharged fertiliser in the section.
Kenya Ports Authority head of corporate affairs Bernard Osero said one of the vessels offloaded only 262 metric tonnes of fertiliser in a shift compared to 1,000 tonnes that is handled under normal circumstances.
“The vessels have had to shut the cargo holds to prevent the fertiliser from getting damaged by the rains,” said Mr Osero in a statement.
“A slow off-take of the bagged fertiliser was also visible as a result of a lower number of trucks that turned up for business.”
The KPA official added that the rains also slowed down operations at the main container terminal.
IMPASSABLE ROADS
Many roads, especially in the estates and the central business district of Mombasa City, were rendered impassable with Kisauni, Likoni and the upmarket Nyali most affected.
Streets, shops and hotels in the CBD remained flooded until late afternoon.
Garbage in parts of Likoni were all over the roads as residents complained that the county government had not prepared for the rains even after knowing that the wet season had begun.
Residents of Mlaleo, Kisauni Constituency, which was the most affected, blamed the devolved unit for allegedly failing to unclog the drainage system. Most were unable to leave their houses early in the morning because of the flooding.
“This drainage issue is a problem that we have been facing year in year out,’’ lamented Ms Elena Heri, a Barsheba resident. “It’s a shame that it cannot be sorted out.”
Another resident, Mr Abdallah Bizoro, wondered why the money that was said to have been set aside last year for the El Nino rains could not be used to address the drainage problem.
Tawfiq Balala, the Transport and Infrastructure executive officer, said the county was redesigning the gully pots.
Asking residents to be responsible, he told the Daily Nation: “People are stealing manhole covers, others dump garbage on the street; that’s why we have these drainages clogging.”
