Severe flooding kills 66 in Kenya, as heavy rains continue
Joseph Winterand
Richard Kagoe,Nairobi
EPA
A further four people have died in Kenya after heavy rain caused widespread flooding, police said, taking the number to have died in the past week to at least 66.
The capital, Nairobi, was hit by more heavy rain overnight although no new deaths were reported.
Eleven people were rescued after a minibus taxi, known locally as a matatu, got stuck as water rose in Nairobi, according to the Kenya Red Cross, while two children were saved from a flooded house.
Heavy rainfall over the past week has triggered flash floods as rivers have burst their banks, flooding homes and damaging roads, power- and water- lines.
Some roads have been closed after bridges were damaged in Nairobi, while some schools were also flooded after Saturday’s downpour.
The interior ministry warned on Sunday that different parts of the country were continuing to experience heavy rains, increasing the risk of flooding.
Authorities have urged residents in low-lying areas to move to safer ground and more than 2,000 people have had to leave their homes to seek shelter.
Police say search-and-rescue operations are continuing following the “torrential rain and subsequent devastating flooding affecting various parts of the country”.
Half of those killed – 33 – have been in Nairobi, where poor drainage has been a major factor, along with the obstruction of rivers and waterways caused by unregulated development.
Businessman Kareem Hassan Ali, who lives in the Parklands area of Nairobi, told the BBC there was about two metres (6.5ft) of water outside his block of flats on Saturday night, although this had now subsided.
His flat was not flooded but cars in the underground parking area were submerged, he said.
Another Parklands resident, auditor Deenesh Patel, said he had spent the night at a friend’s house. “I saw the warning and didn’t want to take any risks.”
Both men called on officials to do more to improve drainage and stop construction that blocked rivers.
“The rain was heavy but this happens each year,” said Patel. “Other low-lying areas were not affected because they have the proper infrastructure.”
President William Ruto on Sunday said authorities were working to clear blocked drainage systems but Ali said they had seen no-one and the Parklands Residents Association had cleared up the debris themselves.
Ruto also said emergency food supplies and medical assistance were being delivered to those affected.
The flooding has not just affected Kenya.
Many factors contribute to flooding, but a warming atmosphere caused by climate change makes extreme rainfall more likely.
The world has already warmed by about 1.1C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.
More about Kenya from the BBC:
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