Over 600 people have been marooned by floods in homes, business premises and on the roads after River Nyando broke its banks worsening the flood situation in Kisumu County.
Ahero bridge on the busy Nairobi-Kisumu road has been flooded disrupting transport from Kisumu to Nairobi, Kisii, Homa Bay and Migori.
Seven villages in Ombeyi location have been submerged in water, with the bridge near Homa Lime in Muhoroni Sub-County destroyed.
Ahero Police Station, Ahero Girls High School, Ahero Sub-County Hospital and Ahero market have been marooned by the flood waters with the situation exacerbated by the increasing backflow from Lake Victoria.
Several roads in Muhoroni, Nyakach, Nyando and Kadibo sub counties have been rendered impassable hampering rescue efforts.
The Kenya Coast Guard and Kenya Red Cross teams have moved to the affected areas to help rescue the affected families.
Kisumu Governor Prof. Anyang Nyong’o on Sunday sent an appeal to the national government to mobilize air support to help rescue the people marooned by floods in their homes.
“We have appealed to state departments with helicopters including the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF), Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) to intervene and help us rescue the affected people,” he said
The county government, he added, was making arrangements to hire boats to assist those marooned by floods to move to safer grounds.
Nyong’o asked people living near River Nyando and River Miriu to move to safer grounds because the rivers were expected to swell further given the ongoing rains.
He said the county government which has already distributed food and non-food items worth Sh4.8 million to the over 15, 000 displaced people was marshalling more support to reach out to more victims.
Other interventions in the pipeline, he said, included medical camps to support the affected families.
He appealed to well-wishers to donate food and non-food items to assist the displaced people.
“We appeal to well-wishers willing to donate food and non-food items to visit our collection centre at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Sports Complex in Kisumu,” he said.
By Chris Mahandara
