A disastrous dam failure in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya has led to the death of a minimum of 71 people.
The incident took place in the early hours of Monday, April 29, when the Old Kijabe Dam in the Mai Mahiu region succumbed to weeks of heavy rain and flooding, breaking its banks.
Susan Kihika, Nakuru’s governor, confirmed to CNN on Monday that a dam burst had exacerbated the area’s flooding situation. However, some locals and emergency services personnel reported to CNN that the disaster was caused by water surging through a tunnel beneath a railway bridge where a culvert was blocked.
The rupture of the dam sent a wave of water, mud, and wreckage downstream, wiping out houses, vehicles, and people in its path. Local villagers recounted the terror of being abruptly awakened by a loud noise and screams as the floods invaded their homes. “I was asleep when I heard a loud bang and screams. Water had flooded the area,” stated Peter Muhoho, a resident of the nearby Kianugu village.
The floodwaters also submerged a major highway, disrupting transportation in one of Kenya’s busiest regions and leaving vehicles mired in debris. Medical personnel attended to the injured while search and rescue teams sifted through the wreckage for survivors.
“This is the worst I’ve ever come across in my career,” revealed Anthony Muchiri, an emergency response manager with the Kenya Red Cross, as rescue operations persisted in the aftermath.
Kithure Kindiki, Kenya’s Interior Minister, directed an immediate inspection of 178 public and private dams and water reservoirs across the nation, emphasizing the urgency of evaluating these structures’ safety to avert further disasters. He suggested that, if necessary, security and intelligence officials should issue evacuation orders for high-risk areas. “The Government is deeply concerned by the loss of life and destruction of public and private property resulting from the ongoing floods,” Kindiki stated on X.
Since March, Kenya has been dealing with torrential rains and flooding which have already claimed 238 lives nationwide. The heavy rains have been linked to the combined effects of El Niño and an Indian Ocean Dipole. These weather events have led to record rainfall across the region, occurring just months after the area started to recover from the direst drought in 40 years, which left millions in need of food and water.
During Kenya’s wet season from March to May, the death toll has exceeded 200, with over 235,000 people displaced across the country. In Tana River County, at least two people died when a boat overturned in the swollen river, while 23 others were saved. Governor Kihika has been touring the affected areas, underlining the need to drain the water in dams to avoid future disasters.
Weather experts predict that the flood crisis will worsen in the coming weeks due to the ongoing El Nino weather pattern. Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General and CEO of the International Federation of Red Cross, noted that the heavy rain since March has triggered destructive floods, river overflows, and mudslides, resulting in more than 200 deaths in Kenya alone.
The Kenyan government is rallying resources to assist those impacted by the floods, while rescue teams persist in their search for survivors following this devastating event.
The extreme weather has also impacted neighboring East African countries, including Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Uganda, leading to hundreds of deaths and thousands of displacements. Located in the eastern part of Africa, the Horn of Africa, which includes countries like Kenya, remains one of the most vulnerable regions to climate-related issues worldwide.
