Pedestrians hang off the back of a matatu (public transport bus) to avoid having to wade across a flooded section of road after a stream burst it's banks overnight following heavy seasonal rain in the capital, Nairobi on April 24, 2024. (Photo by Tony KARUMBA / AFP)
Nairobi: Storms and flash floods turned roads into gushing rivers and swamped homes with waist-high muddy water across the Kenyan capital Nairobi on Wednesday, killing at least 10 people.
The East Africa region has been lashed by relentless downpours in recent weeks, as the El Nino weather pattern exacerbates the seasonal rainfall.
Across Nairobi, vehicles were stuck in the deluge and people waded through floodwaters in slum areas to reach safety.
"The number of bodies recovered so far are 10 and we have other people who are missing," Fred Abuga, a local police commander, told AFP.
According to the Nairobi county governor's office, an estimated 60,000 people, mostly women and children, have been "severely affected" by the floods.
The Kenya Met Department warned that "heavy to very heavy" rainfall was forecast in various parts of the country until May.
In one incident Wednesday, police fired tear gas to disperse angry residents who had blocked a main highway with long queues of cars calling for government action over the floods.
