Mathare residents urge government to act before floods cause another disaster

Residents of Mathare in Nairobi on Saturday sent a plea to President William Ruto's administration to act on flooding in informal settlements following heavy downpour that was witnessed on Friday night.

Mathare community volunteer Juliet Akinyi told The Eastleigh Voice that more than 200 residents are already affected by the ongoing rains, and the situation could grow worse if preparedness for handling future disasters is not developed.

"On Friday night, many residents of Mathare had their properties such as bedding and utensils swept away by water. We fear that the situation may grow worse should rains continue," said Akinyi.

According to her, many residents need assistance in vacuating some of their houses next to the Nairobi River.

"We are worried that those people having their houses located next to the river will be swept away if the government does not take an early opportunity to have them relocated."

Mukuru Social Justice Centre Coordinator Anami Daudi said the government should outline its preparedness for dealing with floods that often affect slum dwellers.

"To avoid deaths and destruction witnessed early this year as a result of flooding, it is important that the slum residents get involved in emergency preparedness efforts," said Anami.

The residents’ fears come a day after the Ministry of Interior and National Administration said storms are anticipated in some regions over the weekend but are expected to subside next week.

The ministry noted that in the past week, counties in the Lake Victoria Basin and North Western regions have experienced heavy rainfall resulting in isolated cases of flooding.

"Evacuation is ongoing in areas such as Kapuothe, Nanga, Lower Katuoro, Wigwa, and part of Dunga in Kisumu Central Sub-County, where about 200 households have been affected and approximately 100 acres of crops washed away," the ministry said in a statement.

Humanitarian support

It added that a total of 47 households are being hosted at Nanga Primary School and are receiving humanitarian support from the State Department for Special Programmes, the Kenya Red Cross and other agencies.

"In Kisumu East Sub-county, a total of 140 households have been affected by floods. The affected villages include Onjweru, Kanyawade, Kaloo, Kodie, Awuor Ajwang', Kodeyo, Alara, Kowuore, Kabuong Kanyawade, Kamiendi and part of Kachola," the statement said.

The ministry said disaster response teams coordinated by national government administration officers are monitoring the situation in various parts of the country and providing support to those affected.

It urged residents of flood-prone areas who may be temporarily relocated for their safety to cooperate with the response teams.

The Kenya Meteorological Department has announced continued rainfall in different parts of the county for the next five days from Friday.

Kenya Met Director-General David Gikungu announced that rainfall was expected to continue over the highlands east region, the west of the Rift Valley, the Lake Victoria Basin, the Rift Valley, the south-eastern lowlands, the Coastal region, north-western and north-eastern Kenya.

Gikungu revealed that isolated heavy rainfall events were likely to occur over some parts of these regions during the first half of the forecast period.

He noted that the distribution of rains was expected to be intense, marked by occasional thunderstorms.

In April this year, more than six more bodies were retrieved from Mathare River following heavy rains witnessed in Nairobi.

During the flooding period, various parts of Nairobi and its environs experience heavy rainfall, resulting in flash floods in areas such as Mukuru, Mathare, Huruma, Ruaraka, Baba Dogo, Bosnia, Umoja 3, Choka, Njiru, Ruai, Utawala, Githurai, Kahawa, Eastern Bypass, Kinoo, Kijabe, Limuru, Ruiru, Graceland, Joska, Kaswito, Kicheko, Mangili, Kenyatta Road, Juja, Kitengela, and Magadi.