The government spokesperson announced that at least 70 people have died from countrywide flooding in Kenya on Friday as authorities ordered more evacuations of people from at-risk areas due to ongoing heavy rainfall.
“The official tally of fellow Kenyans who regrettably have lost their lives due to the flooding situation now stands at 70,” Isaac Maigua Mwaura wrote on X, adding this is “contrary to other figures.”
Earlier Friday, a truck carrying people in Makueni County, southern Kenya, “was swept away by raging waters,” according to the Kenyan Red Cross, which described it as “a distressing incident.”
More than 13,300 households have been displaced in the flooding, which has destroyed 22 roads, and affected 26 schools. The Red Cross says it has rescued 302 people since the onset of the heavy rain in March.
This comes as Kenyan President William Ruto announced Thursday that he has authorized emergency crews to evacuate people living along riverbanks and other affected areas forcibly. “Unfortunately, we will have to move some of them even without them agreeing, because otherwise, they put themselves in danger,” Ruto said.
The president said that he is working with multi-agency teams to “provide adequate support to all those in need and to move citizens who are in dangerous areas, that may be susceptible to floods, away from those areas.”
According to the Red Cross, 26 of Kenya’s 47 counties have been affected by the flooding.
On Thursday, the Kenya Meteorological Department issued an advisory, explaining that heavy rainfall will continue in several parts of Kenya, including Nairobi, although the intensity is likely to reduce on April 28.
The flooding in East Africa has also affected Tanzania and Burundi. The Tanzanian Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa said on Thursday that at least 155 people have been killed by flooding in the country.
SOURCES: NEWS AGENCIES
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