Families living along River Karati in Naivasha have been ordered to move to higher grounds after the river burst its banks and flooded farms, shopping centres and tens of homes.
Manera village, parts of Naivasha town, Delamere shopping centre and farms around Karati location experienced the worst flooding.
The river burst its banks on Monday following heavy rains the area for the last week. The nearby Nyondia Dam has also overflowed, worsening the situation.
Various roads and estates in Naivasha town were flooded for the better part of Tuesday morning, adversely affecting the flow of traffic.
Karati chief Samuel Ng’ang’a said all families living along the river had been warned to move to higher grounds.
“The major problem is Nyondia Dam, which was not completed and due to the heavy rains, water is spilling on one side leading to flooding downstream,” Ng'ang'a told the Star on the phone.
Joseph Maina from Manera village said tens of houses and latrines had been flooded raising fears of a disease outbreak.
He called for the construction of dykes along the river to prevent flooding.
“This is a double tragedy as we have been forced to stay at home to curb the spread of coronavirus and now floods are forcing us out of our homes,” Maina said.
Monica Wambui said they had lost property worth thousands of shillings.
“We were woken up around 2am by water flowing into our homes damaging our property and food. We are asking the government to come to our aid,” Wambui said.
At the Delamere centre, trader John Kamau said owners of various businesses were counting losses running into hundreds of thousands of shillings.
He attributed the flooding to the heavy rains and called on the county and national governments to come to the rescue of the victims.
“This is a big blow to the traders who operate from this centre and their customers and we fear that the floods might cause more damage,” Kamau said.
A guard at the shopping centre Fredrick Juma said the river burst its banks around midnight flooding the businesses including a supermarket and a hotel.
“This is the second time that this river has bursts its bank and we fear that the water levels might rise further due to the ongoing rains,” Juma said.
Edited by P.O