Opinion; Mitigate damage being caused by heavy rains

The devastation caused by heavy rains pounding parts of the country is alarming. In the northern part of Kenya where drought has exacted its toll over the last few years, the onset on rains has not brought relief.

Flash floods and swollen rivers have displaced a number of people, destroyed roads and washed away bridges, effectively paralyzing transport.

In Western Kenya and Kisumu County, a number of rivers have burst their banks, posing great risk to both man and animal. Yet again, a section of the Narok-Mahiu Road has been washed away, paralyzing transportation again.

Once, army engineers mended the road, but a fault line that runs through the area makes such work temporal.

What should worry us more is the health risk and destruction of thousands of acres of land on which crop had been planted.

In Marigat, for instance, 400 acres of bean were swept away after river Perkera burst its banks.

In some areas, toilets have been washed away, raw sewage mixing with flood water that moves through residential areas, exponentially increasing the risk of diseases like typhoid, cholera and malaria.

The level of disaster preparedness by both tiers of government comes into question considering that the meteorological department has consistently given advance notice of the heavy rains.

It was expected that measures would be put in place to mitigate some of the havoc being caused, such as damage to roads and bridges. In all this, there is a lesson; we must conserve our environment by planting trees. In its wrath, Mother Nature is unforgiving.