Mudslides in Kenya caused at least 53 fatalities

Mudslides that occurred on November 23, 2019, in West Pokot County, Kenya, have caused at least 53 fatalities as victims were buried under the debris.

The slides were triggered after intense precipitation struck the area and mostly affected the villages of Nyarkulian and Parua. 

Heavy rainfalls started the previous day and aggravated during the night. "We have never experienced or encountered tragedies that we saw last night. At night it rained for over 12 hours," John Krop Lonyangapuo, West Pokot Governor, stated. 

Landsliding caused significant infrastructure damage destroying roads and bridges while the villages were left inaccessible.

Rescue teams rushed at the affected sites in search of survivors, however, harsh weather conditions, made the efforts difficult. The Red Cross also assisted the operations with its teams walking for about 4,5 hours to reach the villages. "The Kenya Red Cross will continue to support affected families in search, rescue and recovery, psychosocial support, distribution of household items and tracing services to help link families with those reported missing in addition to assessment of other areas at risk of landslides," Red Cross officials stated. 

Rescue teams managed to pull some people, including 2 children, out of the debris.

According to scientists, the weather is rapidly changing in East Africa as a result of the oceans' temperature rise. Heavy rainfalls have increased inducing landslides and floods. The system that causes the phenomenon is known as the "Indian Ocean El Niño" and it is associated with a temperature difference between the west and east parts of the Indian Ocean.

Currently, precipitation in Kenya is above its average value and new rainfalls are expected. "The meteorological department has been warning that we should expect rains of 44 millimeters in the next three weeks, which will cause a lot of flooding across parts of Kenya, especially the low-lying areas," Evelyn Kahungu, a reporter for Al Jazeera, said. 

Other east African countries including Somalia, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Tanzania have been affected by this meteorological phenomenon. Many people have been killed by floods and landslides.