Floods kill nine and displace thousands

Some 50,000 people have been displaced by floods in four counties in western Kenya, the largest number in the past six decades.

Regional Commissioner Ann Ng’etich said 9,617 households, comprising 57,701 people, have been affected, bringing the total number in the region to 108,403.

At least seven people, among them a schoolboy, have died since the onset of the torrential rains, which have resulted in floods in the past three weeks.

Five of the victims are from Bungoma County and two from Busia. “Some 36,762 people have been affected by floods in Busia, 11,388 in Bungoma, 2,550 in Kakamega and two in Vihiga,” she said.

Rivers Nzoia, Lusumu, Yala, Kipsangui, Malakisi, Sio and Malaba and Lake Victoria have caused the trouble, with Mumias, Matungu, Navakholo, Lugari and Likuyani sub-counties in Kakamega at high risk.

“The two people from Busia lost lives after the wall of their house collapsed while they were asleep. Those from Bungoma drowned in fast-flowing waters,” she said.

Bumula, Webuye West, Bungoma East and Cheptais sub-counties in Bungoma are at high risk, she said, while in Busia, Budalangi, Teso North and Samia are affected. Hamisi remains the lone sub-county in Vihiga County that has been threatened by the floods.

Four bridges have been destroyed in Kakamega County and seven in Bungoma, where roads estimated at 700km have also been damaged. In addition, 146 houses in Busia have also been destroyed by floods, 1,234 in Bungoma and 206 in Kakamega.

RELIEF SUPPLIES

Governor Wycliffe Oparanya distributed blankets and mattresses to the families forced out of their homes after River Nzoia broke its banks.

In Matungu, Khalaba MCA Boniface Osanga donated food to families camping at Kandai and Mundere primary schools and gave them money to purchase personal effects.

In Kisumu, where an estimated 32,000 people are affected, the county government and well-wishers have come together to help flood victims as Lake Victoria’s waters continue to overflow, displacing thousands of residents.

Some 14,000 residents of Nyando, Muhoroni, Seme and Nyakach sub-counties benefited from the donations worth Sh3.5 million on Thursday.

Speaking while distributing relief supplies, Governor Anyang Nyong’o urged the Lake Victoria Basin Commission to advise on the crisis of the lake’s rising waters.

The commission’s executive secretary, Dr Ali-Said Matano, said the lake level in Kisumu is at 1,132.11 metres, in Jinja, Uganda at 1,135.8 metres while in Mwanza, Tanzania, at 1,134.28 metres, which he attributed to abnormally heavy rainfall in Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania since October 2019.

In Migori, 600 families have been evacuated to safer ground in efforts by the county government to mitigate a flood crisis resulting from the Lake Victoria backflow.

TRANSPORT DISRUPTED

County Commissioner Joseph Rotich noted there were challenges in getting enough vessels to move people from the islands, including the disputed Migingo. Those rescued are camping in schools at Muhuru and Lwanda beaches.

Meanwhile, motorists using the busy Narok-Maai Mahiu road have been cautioned to be aware of a fault line that is spewing water onto the road.

Sub-County Deputy Commissioner Okumu Oloo said there was a 6km fault line cutting through Entashata villages toward Mosiro.

In Turkana County, nine deaths have been reported in the past one week. Most of the seasonal rivers have burst their banks, hampering transport.

“We don't want more deaths caused by floods. Residents should not attempt to cross flooded rivers,” said County Commissioner Muthama Wambua.

On Kokwa island in Lake Baringo, two villages have been cut off after a bridge built in 2015 was submerged. More than 20 houses on the island have been submerged.

In Uasin Gishu, a 40-year-old man was killed when he was swept away by floods while attempting to cross a river after Turbo bridge on the River Sosian was destroyed by raging floods.

And in the Mt Kenya and upper eastern regions, at least 50 families have been displaced by floods in Maganjo and Kariti villages in Kirinyaga County. In Nyeri, two people drowned in separate incidents in Mathira West Sub-County.

SAFER GROUNDS

Meanwhile, hundreds of families living in the Witemere and Majengo slums in Nyeri Town could be left homeless as authorities seek to reopen a debate on forcible evictions in landslide-prone areas.

Nyeri County Commissioner Loyford Kibaara urged residents of the area to move to safer ground.

In Meru, at least two people died and several families were displaced following floods and mudslides in various parts of the county.

Upper Eastern Red Cross regional manager Maurice Anyango said the floods were caused by heavy rains in Ethiopia.

“We’ve received reports that most parts of Sololo and Moyale have been affected, and we are due to carry out an assessment next week to see how to help the affected families,” Mr Anyango said.

In Garissa, residents living along the River Tana were on Thursday asked to move to higher ground as the Kenya Electricity Generating Company starts releasing excess waters from the Masinga dam, whose water has risen to unprecedented levels.

Reported By Sammy Lutta, Flora Koech, Titus Ominde, Brian Ojamaa, George Munene, Stephen Munyiri, Jacob Walter, Waweru Wairimu, Nicholas Komu, Bruhan Makong, Charles Wanyoro, Shaban Makokha, Victor Raballa and Ian Byron