Floods: Harrowing tales of Baringo South residents trapped in their homes
Residents of Longewan village evacuated from their flooded homes in flood-prone Baringo South on May 4, 2024.
At around 11pm on Friday, Gladys Lemkut, 21, and her family retired to bed after a long day’s work at their farm in Longewan village, Baringo South.
Heavy rains started pounding the area shortly before 8pm.
Due to the ongoing long rains, most of the seasonal rivers in the area have overflown, sweeping away bridges connecting several villages and paralyzing transport.
Despite the area being prone to flooding, the mother of one least expected it would submerge houses, including hers.
Residents of the flooded Ilbolei village in Baringo South try to evacuate goats and sheep that were stranded after the Perkerra and Milo rivers burst their banks.
The Molo River, which drains its water to Lake Baringo, with villages adjacent to it, had broken its banks, draining the surplus water to people’s houses and farms.
Several villages are marooned by water, among them Longewan, Leswa, Rine, Sintaan, Eldume, Ilpunyaki, Kabikoki, Loitip, Sororwa, Losampurmpur, Sirata, Lorok, Eltepes and Nereteti.
A neighbour had raised the alarm, and when she woke up with her husband and one-year-old son, they found their house flooded knee-high.
“I was almost swept away with the infant by the raging waters but my husband pulled me back to the house,” she said.
Rising water level
They would soon realise that their decision to remain in the house was not wise because the water level was rising every minute.
“The entire village was in disarray. Children were crying, some houses and crops had already been swept away and people were walking in darkness, seeking refuge in safer places amid the raging floods. We held our hands as we waded through the flooded village to Longewan dispensary that was on higher grounds,” said the mother of one.
When she opened the door to get out, she said, all her belongings, including utensils and bedding, were swept downstream, save for her baby’s clothes, which she had earlier tied on the rooftop.
All the affected villages were surrounded by water and could only be accessed through boats as all the roads and bridges were submerged.
They braved the cold throughout the night with their young children and elderly ones until midday when the Kenya Red Cross team arrived with boats and evacuated them to the neighbouring Loitip village.
Kenya Red Cross officials evacuate families marooned by floods in Longewan village in Baringo South on May 4, 2024.
Nolnero Maitano, 75, was also woken up by the floodwaters while sleeping with her two grandchildren, aged between five and one-year-old, who had been left under her care after their mother passed away a year ago.
“I was still sleeping when I heard a loud bang on my mud-walled hut. Before I came to my senses on what had transpired, water had already gotten onto our bed. I woke up very quickly, held my two children, and got out of the house,” said Ms Maitano.
Flood waters
She got hold of two shawls and tied the infant on her back while tightly carrying the other child as they waded the flood waters to Longewan dispensary.
With the young children, they stood in the crowded, cold facility on empty stomachs until the following afternoon.
Kenya Red Cross officials evacuate families marooned by floods in Longewan village in Baringo South on May 4, 2024.
“The entire village has been swallowed by the flooding, including all our belongings,” the granny said as she cuddled her starving granddaughter.
James Tondokor,82, who is visually impaired, was also asleep on the fateful night when he realised that his bed was wet. He woke up to find his house had already flooded.
“Owing to my condition, there was little I could do to get out of the house to safety because I was all alone. Luckily, two neighbours responded quickly and managed to get me to a safer area, albeit with difficulty because the entire village was flooded and the rains were pounding heavily. I am just lucky to have been rescued to this place but hundreds of my villagers are still trapped in water,” said Mr Tondokor.
He lost everything in the floods, including his livestock and crops.
“I lost everything, including my house which has since been swallowed by the flood waters. The only thing I have now is the clothes I had put on at the time, nothing else,” said the distraught elderly, shivering in the biting cold.
Paul Lekirongosi, a village elder from Sororwa village, said families lost their livelihoods after the flooding also swept away several homes, farms, and livestock downstream.
According to the elders, more than 400 acres of crops at the Loldama irrigation scheme and other farms in the neighbouring villages have been destroyed.
“We have been adversely affected by the flooding after the three rivers burst their banks, swallowing our homes. The situation is dire because several families are still trapped after their homes were marooned and they cannot access the main roads, which have also been submerged. Villages are adjacent to Lake Baringo whose water levels are also increasing drastically,” said Mr Lekirongosi.
He said the water levels in Lake Baringo have increased by more than five kilometres, and the rivers feeding it, including Molo, Perkerra, and Waseges, burst their banks.
“We appeal to well-wishers to come to the aid of the affected families because they have nowhere to sleep or what to eat because those rescued did not manage to salvage anything,” said the elder, who lost more than four acres under irrigation to the flooding.
Zipporah Katim from Loitip said they are braving the cold with their children at the Loitip Primary School, where they sought refuge after they were displaced.
Residents of the flooded Ilbolei village in Baringo South try to evacuate goats and sheep that were stranded after the Perkerra and Milo rivers burst their banks.
“We do not know where to go because even where we have moved to, Loitip Primary is not any safer because it has been surrounded by the flood waters. The roads to the neighbouring villages have been cut off and we cannot move any further. We have just resigned to our fate,” said the distraught Ms Katim, who has been displaced by the perennial flooding more than five times.
Mukutani MCA Paul Lolgisoi appealed for humanitarian assistance for the affected families and more boats to help evacuate trapped families.
“We only have one boat here which has been evacuating people but cannot manage all the thousands that are still marooned because the boat carries only six people per trip. Darkness is approaching and if the affected people are not moved soon, then it is a disaster in waiting,” said MCA Lolgisoi.
Ilchamus ward
Baringo Kenya Red Cross Co-ordinator Caleb Kibet estimated the affected families in the Ilchamus ward in Baringo South to be more than 500.
He said his team is evicting marooned families by boat and has managed to rescue more than 101 people by Saturday evening, with the worst hit sub-locations being Eldume, Longewan, and Sintaan.
“Through the multi-agency response, we have managed to evacuate more than 101 people from the Eldume Sub-location. We are first targeting the vulnerable people in the marooned homes, including children, the elderly, and expectant women. The locals cannot access safer villages as the roads have also been swallowed,” said Mr Kibet.
“The exercise will continue to ensure that no one is left behind in the evacuation. We are calling on the public to take precautionary measures regarding the current advisories for anyone who is at risk to vacate safer areas. We are also advising the public to ensure that they listen to advisories through the media,” he appealed.
