Kenya: Why did the Nakuru dam burst? Channel blocked by rain-swept debris the reason, says government

A blockage in an underpass or tunnel that channels water to the Tongi river led to the bursting of a dam in Kenya’s Nakuru County on April 29, 2024, according to the country’s government.

The ongoing heavy rainfall in Kenya has deposited debris, stones and soil. This caused the tunnel to become blocked and ultimately burst, according a statement by the Kenyan ministry of water.

Nakuru County Governor Susan Kihika said 45 bodies were recovered buried in the mud, with most of them being children, women and elderly men.

The tragedy raised the death toll from the March-May long rainy season in Kenya to more than 160, as El Nino-induced above-average rains pound East Africa.

The dam tragedy at the village of Kamuchiri near the town of Mai Mahiu is not the first one in Kenya. In 2018, a similar incident occurred at the Solai dam, also in Nakuru County in the Rift Valley during heavy rains, killing 48 people. It resulted from a makeshift private dam bursting its banks, sending water gushing downhill across homesteads.

Read Kenya Floods 2024: Old Kijabe Dam bursts after heavy rains in the Rift Valley; 45 killed so far

“The full impact of the dam’s bursting and the resultant destruction is yet to be established. Tens of residents are still missing according to their kin. So far, a fully coordinated search and rescue operation involving the county, national government, and Kenya Red Cross is ongoing to help ascertain the full impact of the disaster,” said Kihika on April 30.

Dark night

Locals reported that the dam ruptured during the late hours of the night, unleashing a torrent of water that surged down the hillside, engulfing everything in its wake. The floodwaters severed a link road in the area and swept through farmlands, destroying crops and demolishing homes.

“It happened around 3 am when we were all asleep. We just heard a roar of water gushing with fury. Most people were helpless and got swept downhill and possibly died of drowning or trauma. Some people are still missing,” said Simon Gikandi, a resident of Mai Mahiu. 

More than 100 survivors rescued from the disaster are receiving medical attention at various healthcare facilities across Nakuru County. Government and church counselors are deployed to offer them psychosocial support.

As of April 27, all dams under the Seven Forks dams — which include Masinga, Kaburu, Gitaru, Kindaruma, and Kiambere — were at full capacity amid concerns of a massive overflow downstream within the next 24 hours.

According to the National Disaster Operations Centre, heavy rains and flash floods have left more than 168 people dead, 50 injured, 21 missing, 150,365 people (30,073 families) displaced, and more than 190,937 affected across Kenya as of April 28. Till April 24, over 4,824 livestock had been lost, 27,717 acres of croplands had been damaged, 264 small businesses had been affected, and 24 schools had been affected. School reopening across Kenya has been postponed from April 29 to May 6.

The heavy rains and flash floods are also wreaking havoc in neighboring countries like Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Somalia.

We are a voice to you; you have been a support to us. Together we build journalism that is independent, credible and fearless. You can further help us by making a donation. This will mean a lot for our ability to bring you news, perspectives and analysis from the ground so that we can make change together.