In a new report, it has been revealed that since March, Kenya has seen 181 fatalities as a consequence of floods and landslides. With hundreds of thousands of inhabitants forced to leave their domiciles, both the government and Red Cross made this announcement on Wednesday. This news came alongside reports of further death in neighbouring Tanzania and Burundi owing to the same natural disasters.
Heavy rainfall and subsequent floods have led to the destruction of numerous homes, transportation links, and important infrastructure within the region. The death toll in Kenya, impelled by the floods, surpasses the numbers reported last year due to the effects of the El Nino weather phenomenon.
In Mai Mahiu, a town centrally located in Kenya, there were reports of at least 48 people losing their lives due to flash floods on Monday. On the following Wednesday, from beneath the ruins, two corpses were retrieved, reported Felix Maiyo, the South Rift regional manager of the Kenya Red Cross. Search efforts were made with the assistance of military personnel and sniffer dogs, he added. On the same day, a rise in the overall number of deaths was stated by government spokesperson Isaac Mwaura, putting the total at 179. This came after the worst period of drought in Eastern Africa in ages, leading to torrential rains the following year.
In Kitengela, located 33km from Nairobi, rescue missions by Kenya Red Cross workers were underway for residents stranded as a result of the floodwaters. Tourists caught in camps in Narok, 215km away from Nairobi, were also being aided by them, as disclosed by the Kenya Red Cross.
Kenya’s highways authority declared the closure of a segment of a highway leading to the city and a minimum of three other nation-wide routes owing to flooding and debris.
In response to the calamity, Pope Francis voiced his sympathy with Kenyans during an assembly on Wednesday at the Vatican. He expressed his spiritual solidarity with Kenya as the severe flooding had tragically resulted in the loss of many lives, left others injured, and caused widespread ruin.