By Peter Ochieng
Several people are feared trapped in buildings adjacent to a collapsed one in Nyamira county.
According to the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRS), the five-storey building collapsed at Gesima area.
Rescue operations are ongoing. The building collapsed after heavy downpour in the area.
Reports indicate that no one was in the building at the time of the incident, as its construction stalled years ago.
Those trapped were in adjacent buildings.
“The building was empty as it was condemned in 2014 and construction halted. The people who are trapped were in adjacent buildings which were destroyed during the incident,” stated one of the area residents.
Red Cross says that intense rainfall has affected various regions in Kenya, including the Coastal area, Central areas including Nairobi, the Western Highlands, Rift Valley, Lake Victoria Basin, South-eastern lowlands and North-eastern regions.
Since the onset of the March-April-May (MAM) rains, multiple counties have felt its effects, resulting in households being affected, displacements, establishment of displacement camps, submerged arable land, impacted businesses and livestock deaths.
Statistics from the KRS show that 23 counties have been affected, 24,741 households impacted negatively, 11,206 households have been displaced , over 188 people rescued, over 27,716 acres of crops submerged, alongside 4,824 livestock deaths being reported.