(3 Minutes Read)
Floods in Kenya are creating havoc on the ordinary lives there. It has stolen the lives of at least 170 and displaced more than 600,000. Heavy rains have continued there since November. A large number of residents in the country’s north have lost livestock, farmland, and homes, particularly in northeastern Mandera County. Inhabitants are making frantic calls for help as they are facing severe shortages of food and clean water and are facing the threat of waterborne diseases, while medical help is hardly coming through.
The rainy season which starts in October in the Horn of Africa is being amplified this year by El Niño. It is a condition associated with rising temperatures, droughts in some parts of the world, and heavy rains in others. According to the government authorities 38 of Kenya’s 47 counties were affected by the floods. Three regions are the worst hit, the Coast, Northern, and Central Kenya.
Kenya’s military continues nationwide efforts to evacuate hundreds of people trapped by rising waters. In the affected counties like Mandera, food items are distributed to the displaced. The UK High Commissioner to Kenya Neil Wigan visited the county recently. He assured of dealing with both the short and long-term consequences by offering cash grants, food, medicine, and other vital supplies. But, he emphasized that the larger question is climate change, which has to be dealt with through the conscious cooperation of the international community.
Kenya’s meteorological department has warned that heavy rains will continue into the new year and issued a warning for people living in lowlands and flood-prone areas to evacuate to prevent further losses.
Read also:
https://trendsnafrica.com/floods-in-east-africa-many-are-relocated-to-safe-positions/
https://trendsnafrica.com/heavy-rains-disrupt-life-in-kenya/
The recently concluded COP28 held in Dubai tried to muster support for international action to fight Climate Change and address its consequences. While some far-reaching decisions were taken at the summit, representatives of the African continent felt that more could have been done to address climate change, which is affecting the continent more than any other region, though it contributes less than 4% to the carbon emission.
