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Morning downpour paralyses Garissa town as residents decry poor drainage system
09th November, 2025 12:31 PM
Residents of Garissa town and its environs are counting losses following a heavy downpour that lasted several hours.
The town has been experiencing rain for the last two days.
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The downpour that began at around 4 a.m. on Saturday, November 8, 2025, saw floodwaters sweep through homes, roads, and businesses.
The morning torrent brought most parts of the town to a standstill, with major streets rendered impassable.
A spot check in many residential houses, especially in the outskirts of the town, as well as the Garissa market, showed residents wading through flash flood waters.
Desperate residents and businesses whose houses and businesses were submerged in water could be seen trying to salvage what they could.
Diana Achieng, a resident of Iftin, said that she was rudely woken up by the waters that had already gained access to her house, saying that efforts to salvage anything were unsuccessful.
“As you can see, my house is completely submerged in flood waters. I am here standing with my three young children, not knowing what to do or where to go. I am suffering from a problem that is not of my own making. Somebody somewhere decided to be incompetent in his work, and these are the results,” she said.
She was referring to the poor drainage systems in the area that have seen the water lack an outlet that would have allowed the rainwater to freely flow.
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Josephine Mbandi, who also had many of her household items destroyed, wondered who will come to her aid, calling on both the national and county governments to move with speed and address the situation.
“We are where we are because the contractors working on this particular road failed to provide adequate drainage channels, resulting in stagnant water and frequent flooding whenever it rains,” Josephine said.
“Now the question is, now that the rain is here with us for weeks to come, will the relevant authorities come and fix this problem that they created, or will we be left on our own as has always been the case,” she added.
Rashid Ade, another affected resident, criticised the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), accusing it of failing to enforce construction standards and adequately supervise contractors tasked with developing urban roads in the region.
He said the result was people losing their property and incurring losses. He said no one will compensate them
“I want to single out KURA for blame because all along we know that whoever does such a project is done they must be there to ensure that the standards are maintained. They give out contracts, but no one follows up to see if the work is done properly. If they were serious, we wouldn’t be in this mess every rainy season,” he said.
Ali Ismail, a businessman at the Garissa market, wondered why the problem keeps recurring each rainy season, wondering why both the national and county governments have never been serious about finding a permanent solution to it.
“This downpour has once again exposed our town’s vulnerability to flooding—a recurring problem that residents say has been ignored for far too long. Every reason season we must be affected,” said Ismail.
“The people we expect to fix the problem seem unbothered while we continue to suffer. Time has come for people to get serious with their jobs because we pay taxes and deserve better services,” said Ismail.
Last week, Garissa County Commissioner Mohamed Mwabudzo called on residents residing along the Tana River to move to higher grounds and remain alert to flood warnings.
In previous years, flooding has led to the loss of lives, livestock, and extensive property damage, with the most affected areas being Windsor, Bulla Sheikh, Bulla Punda, Bulla Iftin, and the settlements along the river.
