On April 28, in Mororo, at the border of Tana River and Garissa County in northeastern Kenya, heavy rain caused the Tana River to burst its banks. A man swam from the flooded church compound. Dozens of people died.
Andre Kasuku/AP
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On April 28, in Mororo, at the border of Tana River and Garissa County in northeastern Kenya, heavy rain caused the Tana River to burst its banks. A man swam from the flooded church compound. Dozens of people died.
Andre Kasuku/AP
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Human Rights Watch on Thursday accused Kenyan authorities of failing to respond adequately to flooding that has killed more than 170 people since the start of the rainy season.
The New York-based rights group said governments “have human rights obligations to prevent foreseeable harm from climate change and extreme weather events and to protect people when disasters occur.”
The Kenya Meteorological Department issued warnings before the start of the rainy season, but President William Ruto did not establish a response committee until April 24.
Kenya, like the rest of East Africa, has been hit by floods. More than 150,000 people have been displaced and live in dozens of camps.
The human rights group said the government had failed to learn from last year’s rainy season, which killed hundreds of people.
Dozens of tourists were trapped inside a hut in the flooded Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya’s Narok County on Wednesday. Kenya, like the rest of East Africa, has been hit by floods.
Bobby Neptune/AP
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Dozens of tourists were trapped inside a hut in the flooded Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya’s Narok County on Wednesday. Kenya, like the rest of East Africa, has been hit by floods.
Bobby Neptune/AP
The meteorological department had warned that rainfall in the country would increase early this year due to El Niño, but Ruto said in October that the country was not affected by the weather pattern.
The government announced at the time that it would release at least 10 billion Kenyan shillings ($75 million) to prepare for a nationwide response. It’s unclear how the funds were spent, and critics accuse the government of embezzlement.
On April 28, children fled from floods in Mororo, on the border of Tana River and Garissa County in northeastern Kenya.
Andre Kasuku/AP
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On April 28, children fled from floods in Mororo, on the border of Tana River and Garissa County in northeastern Kenya.
Andre Kasuku/AP
People affected by ongoing flooding in Maimasiu in the west of the country have accused the government of a slow response. At least 45 people died as rivers overflowed and destroyed homes, while more than 80 people have been missing since Monday. The wreckage has not yet been cleared and the buried bodies cannot be found.
On Tuesday, the government directed people living in flood-prone areas to forcefully relocate or evacuate as rainfall is expected to increase across the country by May.
On April 17, a man walked through floodwaters in Kisumu, Kenya.
Brian Ongoro/AP
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On April 17, a man walked through floodwaters in Kisumu, Kenya.
Brian Ongoro/AP
