Bomet flash floods leave 700 homeless, at risk of sickness
Flash floods have displaced more than 102 families in Chepalungu constituency, Bomet County, local administrations and the Red Cross have said, placing the number of people affected at about 700.
The authorities said the numbers are expected to rise as it continues raining, with areas affected being the lower zones which are prone to flooding.
On Saturday, when the Red Cross conducted a survey in the affected areas, 40 families had been affected, but the number had more than doubled by Sunday morning.
Pit latrines were destroyed and the structures pushed downstream, in what exposes residents to diseases such as cholera. A spot check by the Nation found many pit latrines either completely destroyed, with the waste coming to the surface, or with huge cracks in the walls and therefore unfit for use.
Mr Jethro Koeh, the Red Cross’ South Rift Regional manager, said they have proactively warned communities living in flood-prone areas, asking them to relocate to prevent disasters.
“The Kenya Red Cross Society disseminates the warning through short mobile phone messages and verbal communication in meetings and barazas organised by administrators in the targeted regions. They are based on meteorological advisories received by the society,” Mr Koech said.
To help victims, the Red Cross and the county and national governments have distributed items including kitchen sets, mosquito nets, sleeping mats, blankets, bars of soaps and aquatabs (water purifying tablets) and 20 litre-jerry cans of water.
Mr Cheruiyot Baliach, chairman of the Red Cross’ Bomet branch, said that with the ongoing rains, a sharp rise in the number of victims was likely.
“There is a need for surveillance by public health officers so that mitigation measures are taken to curb spread of diseases and avert loss of lives. The victims also require psychosocial support,” Mr Baliach said during the distribution of non-food items at primary school grounds
Mr Fanuel Matiko, the Chepalungu assistant county commissioner, said the most affected parts were Bingwa and Siongiroi locations, where he said the people urgently need humanitarian support.
Mr Kibet Ngetich, the Siongiroi member of county assembly, noted that floods have affected the region three times in the last two years, hence the need for a long term solution by the national government.
“The victims require food and medicine, with the elderly and children having been exposed to harsh living conditions for the last three days. They have been sleeping in the cold as their houses were flooded,” Mr Ngetich said.
Ms Betty Kigen, a Bomet County disaster management officer, said the devolved unit would work with humanitarian agencies to help victims in dire need of shelter, medicine and food.
Residents said they had been subjected to harsh living conditions and that it was only by God’s grace that no one died as a result of the floods.
Ms Ruth Cherop, a mother of seven, said she was displaced on Thursday night following a heavy downpour, and that her property was destroyed.
“We moved what we could to a higher ground. The bedding was submerged in water along with other property. My mud-walled house has extensively been damaged and cannot be repaired until the rains subside,” said the resident of Leldet village.
Mrs Mercy Bii, a mother of eight, said was forced to camp at Leldet primary school alongside other families as their houses were destroyed.
“We sleep on the classroom floors at night and go back to the farms in the morning with the children. We do not know how long we are going to live in these conditions as the long rains that usually pound the region in April have just started,” Ms Bii said.
Pastor David Chelule of Maranatha Faith Church said residents lost property including livestock, which were swept away by the floods.
Seasonal rivers and streams are now full with water flowing downstream from the hills. Complicating the situation is that the region’s black cotton soil gets waterlogged during the rainy season. BY DAILY NATION
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