Residents of Kibaimwa location in Marakwet East Sub County are facing acute water shortage for the past three weeks after a section of the supply pipe serving the area was vandalized by unknown people.
The 7 km pipeline which was constructed by the community with the help of World Vision has been serving the community for more than 30 years also serving three secondary schools and seven primary schools in the escarpment and the Kerio valley region.
According to the area chief, Norah Jemutai the crisis has escalated and called on relevant authorities to come in and salvage the situation.
She added that residents and school children have been forced to rely on unclean water expressing fear that unless urgent measures were taken to repair the pipeline, there might be an outbreak of waterborne diseases.
With the opening of the new school term, something drastic has to be done so as to give students reporting back to school an easier time in school, said Joel Kosgei, a parent at Lukuget day secondary school, one of the schools affected by the water crisis.
Marakwet East OCPD Anthony Njeru, said that the police are on the hunt for the culprits and urged the residents to volunteer information in regards to the vandalism.
By Rennish Okong’o
