Residents of Kobala location in Rachuonyo North, Homa Bay County have devised ways of tackling floods which has perennially affected them.
The residents have been moving out of their homes to higher grounds in schools, churches and health facilities whenever River Miriu bursts its banks.
The residents have now decided to dig trenches around areas that let water into their villages as to save themselves from perennial floods. The trenches are meant to redirect water from the river to the lake.
The residents expressed confidence that the measure would reduce flooding in their homes and save their properties.
Kenya Red Cross Coordinator Samuel Omondi said that the agency trained the community on disaster risk reduction before the project started.
“A resolution was made that trenches be dug in areas which let in water to homes to prevent flooding,” he said.
Kenya Red Cross offered the families tools which they use to dig including hoes and shovels.
Omondi said the project would have an impact on the lives of residents as it would reduce flooding.
He said the families were also digging trenches around their houses besides the large waterways next to the river.
“These were just among the solutions that were proposed at the meeting. We are looking forward to engaging the county government to engage contractors to dredge River Miriu,” the official said.
He said sand could be obtained from the river bed and not necessarily on dry land like it is happening now.
The current sand harvesting system has left huge gullies in the region that pose danger to human beings and animals.
“We plan to do the project biweekly until early March before the rain starts. We hope it will have an impact,” Omondi said.
Environmentalists however warned that the project may not protect homes from floods.
Clifford Omondi, a climate change expert said the project, as it is, is not sustainable and could not be used to prevent floods.
He said it may be a short term measure which residents should not depend on to be safe from floods.
He explained that diversion of water should be done by experts who use professional tools for the work and not manually as families in Wang’ Chieng’ were doing it.
The expert said water has channels which could only be changed by professionals. “The people there are likely to create new ways for water to get into their villages. They may be thinking that they are blocking water from moving to their homes when in reality they are causing more damage and floods may affect areas that were initially not affected,” he said.
Omondi said the government should move with speed and help the families.
By Davis Langat
