Crisis looms in Kinango as town is cut off from county

Vehicles at a section of Lunga Lunga-Likoni highway near Ramisi bridge where it caved on due to raging flloods following heavy raind in Kwale County paralysing transport activities. PHOTO | FADHILI FREDRICK | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Area MP Gonzi Rai who attended the meeting told the Nation on phone that food supplies had dwindled so much in the area and prices of foodstuff shot up following the diminished supply.
  • Following heavy rains in the area that killed at least five people, the Samburu-Kinango, Mariakani-Kinango, Mazeras-Kinango and Kwale-Kinango link roads were all washed away by fierce floods in the last three days.
  • In a statement on Wednesday, Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya said five people had died in various areas in the county following heavy rains that also killed nine people in Mombasa on Monday and Tuesday.

A disaster is looming in Kinango town, Kwale County after the area was cut off all the four roads to the town.

A crisis meeting between national and county government engineers and leaders took place at the Ministry of Public Works headquarters in Nairobi to map out ways of restoring the road link.

Area MP Gonzi Rai who attended the meeting told the Nation on phone that food supplies had dwindled so much in the area and prices of foodstuff shot up following the diminished supply.

“We have just come out of a crisis meeting as the situation worsens in Kinango. We don’t want it to get out of hand and both the national and county government officials attended the meeting to see how to resolve the issue quickly,” said Mr Rai.

Following heavy rains in the area that killed at least five people, the Samburu-Kinango, Mariakani-Kinango, Mazeras-Kinango and Kwale-Kinango link roads were all washed away by fierce floods in the last three days.

BRIDGES SUBMERGED

The Mombasa-Lungalunga road had also were cut off at Perani and Ramisi where bridges were submerged while the Kanana Culvert along the same road was also submerged.

According to the MP, maize floor, sugar, bread and other essential commodities had run out in the town and surrounding shopping centres leading to a critical shortage.

“I told the meeting that road engineers and equipment must be dispatched to the affected areas urgently to get the washed bridges replaced and roads repaired. If left unattended, the situation may degenerate into a crisis,” said the MP.

In a statement on Wednesday, Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya said five people had died in various areas in the county following heavy rains that also killed nine people in Mombasa on Monday and Tuesday.

At least 1,500 families have been displaced according to the Governor while an unknown number of livestock swept away.

DISPLACED PEOPLE

Mr Mvurya said his government had mobilised disaster management teams that were providing water treatment services to reduce cases of disease and supplying shelter materials for the displaced people.

The Governor said the national and county governments would distribute food to affected households adding that the county stores had 2,840 sacks of maize to be distributed.

The rains that pounded the coast for three days have subsided with the Kenya Meteorological Department saying the coast storm had hit Lunga Lunga and Tanga areas in neighbouring Tanzania.