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Flooding Inundates Kenya, Killing at Least 32 and Displacing Thousands

Days of heavy rains have pummeled parts of Kenya, leaving at least 32 dead, 15 injured and more than 40,000 people displaced, according to officials. They said that flooding had killed nearly 1,000 farm animals and destroyed thousands of acres of crops, with more rain expected across the country.

The rains began in March during what is known in the country as the “long rains,” but precipitation intensified over the past week, according to the Kenya Meteorological Department.

In Nairobi, where some of the heaviest rain has fallen, more than 30,000 people have been displaced, according to the United Nations. On Tuesday, 18 people, including seven children, were stranded, and later rescued, in Nairobi after heavy rain, the Kenya Red Cross Society said.

Edwin Sifuna, a senator in Nairobi County, said on social media that the local government there was “clearly overwhelmed,” and he called on the federal government for help.

“The situation in Nairobi has escalated to extreme levels,” he wrote in a post that included video of people stranded on rooftops surrounded by floodwaters.

The rains were not expected to subside over the next few days, according to the Kenya Meteorological Department, which had rain in the forecast for parts of the country, including Nairobi, through Monday.

Here are photos of the flooding:

Daniel Irungu/EPA, via Shutterstock

A man crossing a flooded river on a pipeline in Mathare, a neighborhood of slums in Nairobi where many live in tin shacks.

Daniel Irungu/EPA, via Shutterstock

A man swimming through floodwaters to try to rescue people stranded in their homes in Ngondo Village in Mathare.

Simon Maina/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Residents of Mathare tried to salvage goods from their homes.

Daniel Irungu/EPA, via Shutterstock

Residents of Ngondo Village tried to clear muddy water from their homes.

Tony Karumba/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

People clung to buses and trucks to avoid flooded roadways in Nairobi.

Simon Maina/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Dozens of people in Mathare were stranded in their homes after heavy rains.

Monicah Mwangi/Reuters

Flooding caused widespread damage in Nairobi.

Patrick Ngugi/Associated Press

People in the Githurai area used a boat to get through floodwaters.

Thomas Mukoya/Reuters

Flooding in a settlement in Machakos County inundated entire roadways.

Thomas Mukoya/Reuters

From a bridge, two men watched the swollen Athi River near Nairobi.


Source: Elections - nytimes.com


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