POKOT – At least 24 people were killed when floodwaters triggered by a landslide swept debris through a town in West Pokot County, Kenya near Uganda Border.
The landslides have destroyed homes and buried livestock, a government official told local media.
County Commissioner Apollo Okello said the bodies of at least 12 people, including seven children, were recovered on Saturday.
Officials say the villages have been cut off by flooded roads and at least one bridge was reportedly swept away.
Joel Bulal, a local administrator, told the Daily Nation newspaper that rescue efforts had been underway to try and recover people who are missing.
Mr. Okello said others may be trapped but said searches were being hampered by ongoing poor weather conditions.
Many of the East African country’s mountainous regions, also including areas in the southwest and west near the borders with Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, often experience landslides at this time of the year if rains are unusually heavy.
President Uhuru Kenyatta said in a statement that his “heartfelt condolences” were with the relatives and friends of the victims.
Mr Kenyatta said there had been “massive destruction” of property and infrastructure, and that he has ordered armed forces and rescue services to the area to help.
Seven children were among the dead recovered so far, officials said.