Kenya floods death toll rises to 188 as heavy rains persist
Residents of Mathare slum stand next to their destroyed houses next to Mathare river, following heavy down pour in the capital, Nairobi on April 24, 2024. Storms and flash floods wreaked devastation across the Kenyan capital Nairobi on April 24, 2024, claiming at least four lives. FILE PHOTO/Agence France-Presse
NAIROBI — The number of people who have lost their lives in floods in Kenya has risen to 188, the interior ministry said on Thursday, as the country continues to battle heavy rains.
Many parts of the East African nation have been devastated by the rains, floods and landslides that have destroyed roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
“As a result, the country has regrettably recorded 188 fatalities due to severe weather conditions,” the ministry said in a statement.
READ: What’s causing the catastrophic rainfall in Kenya?
It added that 125 people had been reported injured and 90 people were currently missing, while 165,000 have been displaced.
In the deadliest single incident, dozens of villagers were killed when a dam burst near Mai Mahiu in the Rift Valley, about 60 kilometres (40 miles) north of the capital, Nairobi.
The interior ministry said 52 bodies had been recovered and 51 people were still missing after the dam disaster.
READ: Tourists evacuated from Kenya’s Maasai Mara amid flooding
On Wednesday, nearly 100 tourists were among people marooned after a river overflowed in Kenya’s famed Maasai Mara wildlife reserve following a heavy downpour.
The ministry said rescuers had successfully evacuated 90 people by ground and air in the Masai Mara, where 19 lodges were flooded after the River Talek overflowed.
The weather has also left a trail of destruction across other East African countries, including neighbouring Tanzania, where at least 155 people have been killed in flooding and landslides.
The heavy rains have been amplified by the El Nino weather pattern.
El Nino is a naturally occurring climate phenomenon typically associated with increased heat worldwide, leading to drought in some parts of the world and heavy rains elsewhere.
