Heavy rain on Saturday morning flooded several parts of Nairobi. Pulse Live Kenya reported that the city's drainage system struggled to cope. Roads turned into streams of muddy water. Vehicles were partly submerged, and floodwater reached businesses.
At Githurai Roundabout, one of the city's busiest commuter corridors, sections of the transport hub went under water. Vehicles struggled through the waterlogged roads. Pedestrians waded through murky water or looked for other routes, the outlet reported.
Parklands was also hit. Pulse Live Kenya said roads there looked like rivers. Images shared on social media showed stranded pedestrians as partly submerged vehicles moved through the water. In Westlands, a major commercial and entertainment hub, floodwater spilled onto carriageways and pavements. Motorists slowed down, and pedestrians struggled to reach nearby businesses.
According to Pulse Live Kenya, the floods came after the government spent billions of shillings on El Niño preparedness. That work included the city's drainage system. The outlet said Kenyans were now asking whether the promised interventions had made a real difference on the ground. It also reported doubts about whether the national and county governments can protect lives, property and critical infrastructure.
On Wednesday, Nairobi City County published an update on what it called ongoing El Niño preparedness activities by Governor Johnson Sakaja. The update listed work at Kibarage River in Parklands ward, Waithaka Road, Nairobi dam and Ngong River. Its description gave no further details.
Questions about the county's emergency readiness were raised before the rain. In an editorial on Thursday, The Star said the collapse of an 18-storey block in Eastleigh exposed a lack of disaster preparedness by City County. The paper urged Sakaja to equip fire crews and train specialised emergency teams. It also called on him to enforce building codes and set up rapid emergency systems.
Pulse Live Kenya said more heavy downpours are expected.