Seasonal river swallowing Napetet village in Lodwar

Napetet village, on the outskirts of Lodwar town, is being swallowed by the widening seasonal River Kawalase.

Local leaders have cautioned that houses located 300 metres from the banks of the river are all at risk of being swallowed by the widening river, pointing out thatLodwar Airstrip, Lodwar County and Referral Hospital, Lodwar Primary School, and populous Napetet village will also be destroyed if reliable gabions are not built.

Before a bridge was constructed on the 100-metre-wide seasonal river along the Lodwar-Kakuma road, several vehicles were swept by floodwaters, killing dozens of motorists. 

Much attention was put on addressing disruptions of transport activities because, on some occasions, passengers would spend more than three nights before flood waters subsided.

Because of this, traders in fresh farm produce and fish from Lake Turkana counted losses whenever the flooding problem occurred.

The perennial flooding of the river, more than six feet deep, is still a ticking time bomb for residents of Napetet village.

Mr Mark Tukei, a resident, has stayed in the village for six years and constructed his permanent home and five rental houses that were earning him Sh45,000 per month.

His compound was initially 26 metres away from the banks of the river, where he had invested in gabions to divert the water.

“When the water levels rose above on Sunday, they completely washed away all the rental houses," Mr Tukei told Nation.Africa.

He learned of the incident through a call from neighbours who salvaged his vehicle.

"I have lost my poultry projects, kitchen gardens, goats and their shed, and three-quarters of my compound that also had a perimeter wall. I have relocated my family to safe grounds in town," Mr Tukei said.

Residents say besides losing more than 100 houses to the river, its average depth when dry may not accurately represent the current situation.

Attempts by the national government in 2016 to control flash floods from River Kawalase from submerging other densely populated villages such as Soweto and California also hit a snag after raging floodwaters destroyed a multimillion gabion launched by the then Water Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa.

Ms Christine Akusi, a resident, recalls that in 2018, her neighbour's semi-permanent house, built on a half-acre piece of land, was swept away.

She recalls shocking scenes where three bodies that had been buried within two months were exhumed from their graves and taken to the mortuary by relatives and Kenya Red Cross officials.

"Sadly, our ancestral homes are being swallowed by the river, with others left without memories of their loved ones after their graves were completely swept away," Ms Akusi said.

In 2020, residents embarked on a community initiative to redirect the flow and save the village by clearing dense thickets of thorny trees.

"Besides destroying our homes, the river which has changed its channel occasionally sweeps away graves of our relatives," explained Ms Esther Korima, a resident.

She said despite calls from authorities for them to relocate to higher grounds, Napetet, Natambusio, Ipelu, Longech, Lodopua, Adipo, Najasikiria, Mission, Nawoi, and Nabute villages are their ancestral land, and so it is hard to vacate.

She notes that places they are asked to relocate to lack basic amenities such as water, health centres and schools.

Turkana Central Member of Parliament Joseph Namuar, who visited affected families and traders, observed that poor workmanship was to blame for the massive destruction and displacement.

Mr Namuar said that the authority was to construct gabions along the river to ensure it doesn't overflow.

"We want State investigative agencies to conduct an audit of work done and funds utilised by the authority for the financial year 2019/2020 and second allocation 2020/2021 to establish if the findings will be commensurate with the expected work paid and done. If not, I will raise the issue in Parliament," the legislator said.

He said that houses located 300 metres from the banks are all at risk of being swept away.

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