Aerial shot of gulley that caused Mai Mahiu tragedy

Fresh details revealing the circumstances that led to Monday’s tragedy that has so far left over 50 people dead and scores injured in Mai Mahiu, Naivasha have emerged. It turns out that the raging water that swept villages down the rift valley was not from a dam in Old Kijabe as it had earlier been reported, in fact, locals and authorities have confirmed that there is no such dam.

The raging water, as confirmed by the Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA), came from a water-filled gulley around a railway line in Kiambu County and flowed down to the Naivash sub-county sweeping away everything on it’s path. The water also destroyed part of the Nairobi-Nakuru highway.

According to WARMA, the nearest dam in the area is about 15 kilometres away.

Water has been filling the gulley over time and with the recent heavy rains; the gulley burst.

Police say most of the dead in the Maai Mahiu tragedy are women, children, and elderly people who probably could not run fast enough.

Mai Mahiu disaster