Tourism stakeholders urge county government to fix Naivasha drainage

Moi South Lake Road which leads to hotels and Hell's Gate National Park in Naivasha. [File, Standard]

Naivasha Tourism Association (NTA) has challenged the Nakuru county governments to address the Naivasha drainage system ahead of the expected heavy rains.

The association said that the El Nino rains could have adverse effects on the tourism sector, which employs hundreds directly and indirectly around the lakeside town.

Speaking during a consultative meeting in Naivasha, a committee member of the association Charity Githinji, said that the drainage system was overwhelmed by the rising population, leading to a crisis whenever it rained.

She regretted that this had a major effect on the tourism sector and they were ready to work with the county government to map out flood-prone areas.

“We are deeply concerned by the projected heavy rains against our drainage systems and we hope the county has started expanding the current lines to avoid a disaster,” she said.

The association also decried the poor condition of Moi South Lake Road which leads to hotels and Hell's Gate National Park.

Peter Kimani, a board member of NTA expressed concern over the condition of Moi South Lake Road, saying it was deteriorating by the day due to poor workmanship.

“This road was patched up during the World Rally Championship and its condition is getting worse, adversely affecting transport to various hotels, Hellsgate and even Kengen,” he said.

Kimani who is the Sawela Lodges MD warned that the situation could worsen once the rains start, saying that in the past, the road had been rendered impassable by flash floods.

In the last couple of years, sections of the town and the Moi South Lake Road have been rendered impassable whenever it rains

Speaking earlier, Naivasha sub-county public health officer Margaret Mungai assured that the sub-county disaster management committee had been activated ahead of the rains in October.

Mungai said that the committee was already unclogging drainage systems and demolishing structures on waterways ahead of the projected heavy rains.

The senior officer warned that the expected rains could trigger water-borne diseases and assured that the department was ready to deal with any outbreak.

“With other government agencies and the county government, we have embarked on a clean-up exercise, unclogging drainage systems and issuing water treatment tablets,” she said.