@ManuelOdeny
A gold miner has perished, 300 families are displaced and road construction works have been halted as heavy rains wreak havoc in Migori county.
Engineers working on the 42km Masara-Sori road have been forced to seek government approval to redesign a section of the project around North Kadem where more than 300 families have been displaced.
Nyanza regional commissioner Magu Mutindika said 25km of the Sh1.7 billion project has been completed.
“The area, especially in North Kadem ward, has been affected by floods and heavy rains, forcing the contractor and government engineers to seek a mandate to redesign that part of the road,” Mutindika said.
He said the part to be redesigned will involve culverts and measures to avoid flooding. The works will include diversions and more gravelling.
Mutindika said the redesign will be approved in two to three weeks. More funds will be allocated to the project to accommodate the new design.
“Once the redesign is completed, the work will progress smoothly,” the administrator said.
He was speaking on Tuesday at Rongo University during the inspection of several government projects in the county.
In North Kadem, West Kanyuor chief Philip Opolo said the families have been camping at local churches and schools. He said water levels have been rising. The flooding was caused by overflow from rivers Migori and Kuja, which have broken their banks.
“The floods have not only affected the construction of the road, but also livelihoods and we are calling for relief food to those affected," Opolo said.
He said recently cultivated farms have been washed away. Some livestock were also missing. The flooding has also raised fears of hippo and crocodile attacks given the wild animals are now roaming about.
The flooded area is at the confluence of the two rivers near the point at which they drain into Lake Victoria.
On Monday evening, gold miner George Oriedo died after a mine in Mikeyi area in Nyatike subcounty collapsed following heavy rains.
“The miner was inside the mines just after the heavy rains and was out to get ore, and the walls, weakened by floods, collapsed and he suffocated,” said Jared Nyakie, a headteacher at Ndemra Primary School.
The body was moved to Migori Referral Hospital mortuary.
Edited by P.O
