- The country continues to receive heavy rains which have resulted in flash floods. Northeastern has been the most affected.
- Abdullahi also took issue with the mixed messaging which he said had contributed to the confusion.
Image: STEPHEN ASTARIKO
Wajir Governor Ahmed Abdullahi on Wednesday said a total of 10,000 households have been displaced by floods as a result of the El Nino rains.
He said that the numbers were likely to go up since it was still raining heavily in the entire county.
"We call on partners and stakeholders to join my administration in supporting families that have been affected," he said.
He spoke when he joined other guests in discussing the flood crisis affecting the region at Citizen TV.
The country continues to receive heavy rains which have resulted in flash floods. Northeastern has been the most affected.
Image: STEPHEN ASTARIKO
Abdullahi who later chaired a crucial cabinet meeting to tackle the worsening flood crisis said the lack of roads further complicated the situation.
He said the relief items cannot get to towns like Buna in Wajir North meaning air transport is much needed.
“Acknowledging the urgency, our main focus is approving the emergency airlift of vital supplies—such as food, mosquito nets, and medicine," he said.
"The approval of this emergency airlifting and the allocation of emergency funds demonstrate our commitment to safeguarding the well-being of our residents affected by this natural disaster."
He said that there were many settlements along that road and the international ring roads to the Ethiopia side that would have come in handy during such times were also cut off.
“In terms of access by roads to most of our settlements, I can tell you probably about 50 percent of the county has been affected.
"The only tarmac road there is the one between Garissa and Modogashe which has been cut off. This county has about 700 or so settlements and about half of those have been affected in one way or the other,” he said.
Abdullahi also took issue with the mixed messaging which he said had contributed to the confusion.
“The met department missed advising the president that there will be no more Elnino. What followed is that everyone slept on the job and we got caught up,” he said.
Image: STEPHEN ASTARIKO
“So yes the mixed messaging could have well affected our preparedness. I think we should have still prepared for the worst. The coordination meetings that we were having with the Deputy President stopped until the other one that you saw us meeting."
Abdullahi who is also the Vice Chair of the Council of Governors further called for increased funding of the Kenya Red Cross saying they had done a lot to save the situation.
“I also honestly at the national level we should consider funding the red across as a country. Their mechanisms and their setup are very agile when it comes to responding. They should not only be depending on well-wishers and donor communities,” he said.
Abdullahi said that while they have done a lot of sensitization on dry land agriculture the response from the community has been positive.
He also took issue with the limited resources at the county’s disposal something he said hinders them from doing mega projects.
He called on the National government to fast-track the construction of mega dams.
This, he said, will go a long way in helping residents engage in farming and deal with the food situation since they have vast lands.
Dr Ahmed Idris, the Kenya Red Cross Secretary General disclosed that the latest statistics from the National Disaster Operation Center show that 24,000 households have been displaced.
He called for a coordinated approach as is currently the case noting that this will see responsibilities shared.
He said the biggest challenge that they are currently facing is getting the relief items to areas within Wajir and Mandera Counties singling out Elwak, Diff and Buna as the most affected.
“What we are witnessing in the variations movements from one extreme emergency to another is really the problem of precipitation variability as a result of climate change. We are likely to continue witnessing this. We need to therefore as a country continue preparing from a policy perspective and institutional design perspective how to systematically be responding to that."
He thanked the KRC staff and volunteers who continue to work consistently and continuously responding from one emergency to another.
On Monday, Interior CS Kithure Kindiki while speaking in Garissa said at least 46 people have been killed by flash floods across the country as a result of the ongoing El Nino rains. The numbers have since risen to 50.
He appealed to Kenyans not to take chances when it comes to flood waters.