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| Lake Victoria rose and flooded several houses at Nduru Kadhiambo in Kisumu County. Many parts of the country are currently experiencing floods due to heavy rains. |
NZOIA,
Kenya
At least
five more people have died in floods and heavy rains in Nyanza and Western
region, as River Nzoia left a trail of destruction in Kenya.
Residents say it is the worst flood in decades and
can only be compared to the early 1960s raging waters that wreaked havoc in the
region when the Nzoia River burst its banks.
Like a buffer zone in a war field with birds
perched atop trees, hundreds of families are literally perched on dykes
stretching as far as one’s eyes can see.
While an estimated 40,000 people are displaced, it
is the residents of Busagwa in Busia County who seem to have borne the brunt of
the heavy rains and flooding that continues to be building up by day.
With their belongings piled around them and
livestock tethered nearby, the devastating effect of Mother Nature has forced
hundreds of Busagwa flood victims to seek refuge on a strip of dykes after
their homes were submerged.
Their temporary shelter now turned into some sort
of island, some families have refused to be evacuated as they hope that the raging
waters will somehow give way for them to resume their normal lives.
Due to the low capacity and the few available
rescue boats, Kenya Coast Guard Service and other disaster management and
humanitarian assistance organisations have focused on evacuating the victims to
Mudembi ‘mainland’.
“We are trying to mobilise resources to hire other
vessels to assist in the search and rescue mission,” said Mr Thomas Mango of
Busia Community Development organisation.
He expressed frustration that the shallow waters
experienced in some areas is jeopardising accessibility of boats and making it
difficult to operate.
Over 200 houses, including the old semi-permanent
structure belonging to Lugale Parish, have collapsed in the floods. Four people
have been confirmed dead.
Busia County Commissioner Joseph Kanyiri has,
however, said they will enforce evacuation to avert crisis.
“People living in flood-prone areas must
immediately be evacuated while defiant ones risk being arrested and charged in
court,” he said.
He pointed out that the situation is getting out of
hand and any further delay could turn ugly as authorities are struggling to
cope with growing water volumes in the area.
The flooding has forced hundreds of people to
improvise shelters along Siaya-Rwambwa-Nyadorera highway.
“It’s desperate as we’ve nowhere else to turn to,
as the few designated rescue centres cannot accommodate all of us,” said
59-year-old Tobias Otieno from Nyadorera.
Because of the government directive to avoid
overcrowding at the camps to curb the Covid-19 spread, authorities are
restricting the numbers of people per classroom at the rescue centres.
Goro Primary School in Siaya County was also fully
immersed in water.
Meanwhile, three people died in Suba over the
weekend in rain -related incidents, Deputy County Commissioner Kamau Maina
said.
In Nyando, the devastating effects of the flood
continue to attract overwhelming support from well-wishers and donor agencies
as the national and county governments were called upon to provide a lasting
solution to the perennial crisis.
Help from Kenyans living in the US also saw
approximately 3,000 people benefiting from blankets, foodstuff such as maize
flour and sugar worth Sh500,000.
The donation that was distributed in camps in
Nyando, Muhoroni and parts of Kisumu East came through Kano Empowerment
Association and Kavirondo Men’s Group.
Meanwhile, a key road linking three counties in
western Kenya has been closed after River Nzoia bridge collapsed under the
heavy rains.
Hundreds of commuters to Bungoma, Kakamega and
Busia counties were yesterday morning forced to seek alternative routes after
part of the bridge collapsed.
The bridge, which was built in 1962, developed
cracks after the Saturday night downpour, before it collapsed on Monday
morning.
In Kisumu and Siaya, residents and leaders are
worried about the safety of some bridges in the area, calling them a
disaster-in-waiting.
Residents of Kisumu East, Nyando and Usenge in
Bondo Sub county fear that lives will be lost if the government, through its
roads agencies, doesn’t act fast.
The bridges include Ayweyo in Nyando, Kambogo in
Kisumu East and Usenge-Majimbo Bridge in Bondo.
Kisumu East MP Shakeel Shabbir and residents led by
Mr John Riaga claim that their calls to have the Kambogo bridge repaired have
fallen on deaf ears.
The bridge has been partly washed away.
In Isiolo, residents of Biliqo in Merti are
grappling with acute water shortage following breakage of pipes that tap water
from River Ewaso Nyiro, which burst its banks due to the downpour.
More than 400 families that rely on piped water
have, in the last two weeks, been walking for about six kilometres to fetch
murky water from the river, which could expose them to waterborne diseases.
In Badharero, Bori, Yaballo, Uran and Dabel of
Marsabit County, some 3,000 people have been marooned by floods and risk
starvation.
In Laikipia, farmers are counting their losses
after heavy rains destroyed crops in parts of the county.
At Rubere, Ng’arua Division of Laikipia West, over
400 acres of tomatoes and maize were swept away by the raging waters.
The residents are now living in fear after Rubere
dam, which sits on a 10-acre plot, broke its banks.
According to Matuiku Location Chief John Wamae,
most of the farms that were destroyed are adjacent to the dam. - Daily Nation
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