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Flash floods, landslide kill a minimum of 45 in main Kenya

Flash floods and a landslide in main Kenya killed at least 45 people and hurt over 110 others on Monday as floodwaters swept away houses and vehicles in the town of Mai Mahiu, the federal government said.

Cops initially blamed the flooding on a burst dam, however the ministry of water later said it was brought on by a river tunnel under a railway embankment becoming obstructed with debris.

The water (eventually) swept the railway line and started moving downstream with a really high speed and speed triggering damage of home and death, the ministry said. 2 local residents confirmed the water ministry's account.

While 45 bodies have actually currently been obtained along the path of the flash floods and the landslide, search, rescue and recovery is ongoing, interior minister Kithure Kindiki stated in a declaration.

Video showed a large section of rail track, embankment and trees swept downhill. Hours after the rain had actually slowed down and floodwaters started to recede, local homeowners pulled bikes and household belongings from the mud.

Joel Kuria, a farmer, was woken up by screams and the shivering of your home he shares with his wife and 2 children.

It was extremely dark, but we managed to leave your home in time before the gushing waters swept away whatever including our livestock, he told from where he was encamped in the town centre.

The whining sound was frightening and was intensified by screams of victims being cleaned downstream.

The deaths have brought the overall toll across Kenya from heavy rains and flooding because last month to over 140. More than 185,000 individuals have been displaced.

In the capital Nairobi alone, near 10,000 people have needed to leave their homes, President William Ruto told in an interview, describing all those impacted as victims of environment change.

TOLL COULD RISE

Roadway and Transport Minister Kipchumba Murkomen informed press reporters said he feared the death toll in Mai Mahiu would rise even more.

Dozens more have been killed and numerous thousands displaced by intense rainstorms in other East African countries, including Tanzania and Burundi.

East Africa was hit by record floods during the last rainy season in late 2023. Scientists say environment modification is triggering more intense and regular severe weather occasions.

The Kenya Red Cross said on X that its workers had recovered 2 bodies after a boat capsized late on Sunday in the Tana River, in eastern Kenya's Garissa County. Twenty-three people were rescued from the exact same incident.

A roadway underpass at the international airport in the capital Nairobi was flooded, and hydroelectric dams were filled to capacity, a federal government spokesperson said.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was saddened by the loss of life and damage triggered by flash flooding in a number of parts of Kenya, his spokesperson stated in a declaration.

(source: Reuters)