Three people escaped death by a whisker after the tractor they were using to cross a flooded road was stuck in the muddy water at Nkaretta area in Narok Central Sub County.
The area Assistant County Commissioner (ACC) Ali Shakur said the three male adults got stuck in the night hours following the heavy downpour being experienced in the area that caused River Noonkopit to burst its banks.
Shakur said upon receiving the report, he coordinated the Sub-County El-Nino preparedness and rescue members led by the Kenya Red Cross volunteers who sent divers to the area to rescue the affected persons.
“The water levels were very high as a result of heavy flooding. The tractor they were riding on almost submerged in the water completely when the divers came and rescued them,” he said.
The divers managed to rescue the three persons while the tractor was still stuck in the area awaiting the rain to subside.
Following the incident, the ACC called on locals to be vigilant when crossing flooded rivers and those living on lowlands to shift to higher areas.
He called on parents who have school-going children to escort their young children to school and back to avoid the risk of being swept by floods.
Following the ongoing rains, many residents in different parts of the County have decried impassable roads that have made it impossible to move to the market areas, and schools or access medical services.
Milton Salaon said he was forced to spend two nights in the Loita area following the emergence of seasonal rivers along the busy Naroosura- Ewaso Nyiro highway.
He called on the government to construct permanent bridges that will enable the residents to travel in both rainy and dry seasons.
According to the Department of Meteorological Services, the ongoing heavy downpour is expected to continue this week.
By Ann Salaton
