- The affected have until 6 pm to move to safer spaces, identified by the government.
- Since the first vacation orders were given, only 86 families have heeded the instructions and moved out.
Image: MINA
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has ordered the immediate vacation of over 200 families that live downstream Kijabe railway, in Ruiru village.
The CS directed the Kiambu County Security and Intelligence Committee to evacuate all persons whose residences are likely to be on the path of downstream stormwater in the event of a drainage system burst.
He said water has started building up around the railway, and could cause a bigger tragedy compared to Mai Mahiu.
He explained that the water is gathering upstream, and this puts the lives of those who live downstream at risk
The affected have until 6 pm to move to safer spaces, identified by the government.
“Those who fail to move out will be evacuated mandatorily for public safety,” Kindiki said on Tuesday.
“More water building up around the Kijabe railway and likely to cause a bigger catastrophe than what was witnessed in Mai Mahiu.”
Since the first vacation orders were given, only 86 families have heeded the instructions and moved out.
The Mai Mahiu tragedy that occurred on April 29, has since claimed over 60 lives.
On Thursday last week, Kindiki ordered voluntary vacation or mandatory evacuation of all persons living in the neighbourhood of the 178 dams and water reservoirs.
The CS also ordered County Security and Intelligence Committees to continuously monitor other dams or water reservoirs across the country that could present risks in the event of further precipitation.
He said the government would provide logistical support, food, and non-food essential supplies to all those affected by the orders.
The CS further directed all persons living in riparian corridors and within the 30-metre radius of rivers across the country to vacate immediately or be forcefully removed.
The Interior CS also ordered the removal of buildings erected illegally within the 30-metre radius of Nairobi Rivers (Mathare, Ngong and Nairobi Rivers).
As of Tuesday, the death toll from the ravaging floods had risen to 238.
According to the Ministry of Interior, another 75 people are still missing, while 174 people have been reported injured.
A total of 47,000 households have been displaced affecting approximately 235,000 people.
The Ministry, however, said that approximately 286,011 people have been impacted by the heavy rains, across the country.
Some 167 camps have been set up across 22 counties and are currently hosting 70,451 people.