Kenyan families urged to move as flood death toll rises

AllAfrica.com via the Daily Nation (Kenya): People living close to river banks and flood-prone areas have been urged to move to safer grounds as the death toll from the ongoing rains reached 26. Special Programmes permanent secretary Ali Mohamed said the situation could get worse as more rivers continue to break their banks. The ministry in charge of coordinating disaster response has spent Sh50 million on relief supplies. The PS, however, dispelled fears, saying the government was fully prepared to handle the situation.

The meteorological department has said the rains will continue until the end of this month in most areas. More than 10,000 people in Loima, Turkana East, are being relocated after River Kerio changed its course. Mr Mohamed said the river had last used the valley in 1967 and the change caught many off-guard. Five people died after they were swept away by raging floodwater in the same district following two days of heavy rainfall.

…According to the Kenya Red Cross, more than 30,000 people have been displaced from their homes countrywide due to floods. In parts of Kerio Valley, many hectares of vegetables were on Sunday submerged following a heavy downpour that started last Friday….