DEVELOPING STORY: KWS wardens looking for tourists washed away at Hell's Gate National Park

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The Hell’s Gate National Park. It lies to the south of Lake Naivasha. [File, Standard]

The search for missing tourists who were caught up in the floods at Hell's Gate National Park, on Sunday, has resumed this morning. The search is being led by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). 

8:29 am: KWS recovers the sixth body. One person still missing. 

7.54 am: Search and rescue operation for three missing tourists continues. Two more bodies were recovered overnight, bringing the total number of the dead from the tragic flash floods to four people.

Sunday tour of Hell's Gate National Park turns tragic

It was meant to be a good Sunday outing at the Hell's Gate until all hell broke loose (literally. A tour group of six tourists and their guide were caught up in flash floods. One of the survivors who managed to escape, alerted the KWS wardens manning the park. 

Hours later, reports indicated that the six could be dead after the body of a woman of Asian origin, was recovered miles away in Suswa town.

According to the survivor who raised the alarm, the tour group were local tourists who had gone for an excursion.

“We received reports of flooding in the gorges from a survivor, we managed to rescue him but six others are still missing," said an officer at the Hells Gate National Park, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak on behalf of the management. This was Sunday evening. 

The survivor said his wife was among the six that had been swept away by the floods.

Heavy rain 

According to authorities, the incident occurred at around 4 pm after rains pounded the areas of Mt. Longonot and Kingdom.

The officer told the Standard on the telephone that search and rescue efforts were underway but water levels were high in the gorges, slowing down the process.

Nakuru County Police Commander Stephen Matu said they have deployed officers to the park to join the search and rescue team. He had no details of the incident but promised to get back to us.

This is not the first time the park is experiencing floods. In April 2012, seven members of a Nairobi church youth group perished after they were swept away by flash floods.

The Hells Gate National Park lies to the south of Lake Naivasha and it is known for its scenic features. It is an important home for rare bearded vultures.