Government urged to release emergency funds to address effects of El Niño rains

Wajir leaders have called on the government to quickly release emergency funds to deal with the catastrophic effects of the El Nino deluge.

The leaders have warned the county was facing a humanitarian crisis of major propositions which warrants an urgent and appropriate response.

The torrential rains have led to the death of four people, displaced thousands from their homes, left towns and villages submerged under water, and caused extensive damage to properties.

Wajir County is now cut off from the rest of the country and towns and villages, making the delivery of essential needs such as food and medicines impossible.

Speaking at a press conference in Nairobi on Monday, Wajir Governor Ahmed Abdullahi forewarned that unless the central government speedily released the money to address the effects of the El Niño rains, the situation will deteriorate further.

Fear of diseases outbreak

He stressed the need to urgently intervene and provide efficient logistical support to rescue people who were marooned to prevent the outbreak of diseases.

The governor said the county is doing whatever is in its means including attempts to move those trapped by rising water levels to safe grounds. However, they were overwhelmed by the unrelenting deluge. He cautioned “Unless we get more logistical support, we fear more lives will be lost.”

“We've procured medical supplies from KEMSA and are airlifting them to address immediate health needs. However, we require additional support in the form of mosquito nets and chlorine to mitigate the health risks," said Governor Ahmed.

He said the situation is so bad that “even people with money can't buy anything from towns because our towns too are unreachable and don't have anything,"

Some of the most urgent needs are mosquito nets, water treatment tablets, medicines and chlorine.

Eldas MP Aden Keynan said if the heavy rains continued as predicted for another month the roads in the county would be impassable. He appealed to the government to provide KDF planes to rush food and medicines to the communities affected.

“We are appealing to the government to come out properly organized and assist the residents of Wajir, Mandera and Garissa Counties in complimenting the county governments by invoking the emergency measures that will avert further loss of lives,” said Aden.