Residents living along the swollen river Tana in Garissa County have been advised to move to higher and safer grounds.
Addressing the public who turned out for 2019’s Mashujaa day celebrations held at Garissa primary school grounds on Sunday, area County Commissioner (CC), Meru Mwangi said that the residents in these area should start moving out before the floods maroon their houses.
The CC singled out Bakuyu, Ziwani, Showgrounds, Bulla Sheikh as some of the areas where the residents should start moving out with immediate effect.
“We have in the past witnessed people being submerged overnight due to failure to heed evacuation calls and we had to rescue them. As we speak the Kenya Red Cross yesterday rescued 4 people that were marooned by the raging waters,” Mwangi said.
“We have teams on the ground led by the Red Cross, chiefs among others to ensure that those who don’t have anywhere to go are settled until the floods recedes,” he added.
Faithful’s in churches operating from the show grounds were not able to hold their sermons today and instead used the morning session to move their equipment out of the area for fear of floods.
Mwangi said that the national and county together with aid agencies are working in unison to ensure that the flood victims have shelter, adequate clean and safe drinking water during the flood period.
The administrator also cautioned motorists plying flooded sections of the roads not to risk their lives by crossing with their vehicles.
Four people died in Mwingi in Kitui county last week after their double cabin pick-up was swept as the driver tried to cross River Mutindi. The driver and his turn boy survived.
The volume of water on river Tana has been increasing in the past three days and is threatening to burst its banks following heavy rains around Mount Kenya region, the river’s catchment area.
On the forthcoming national examinations, the county commissioner said plans have been put in place to ensure that exam papers in centres that have been cut off due to the destruction caused by the current heavy rains are delivered as scheduled.
“I want to assure all the candidates seating for this year’s KCPE and KCSE that the exam papers are secure and those in areas that have been cut off by the currents rains will seat for their exams,” he said.
By Jacob Songok
