5 die after Kenyan coastal city hit by heavy rain

Five people were killed on Monday following heavy rain in the Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa, local officials confirmed. The five were killed when a perimeter wall collapsed and fell on them due to a heavy downpour.

The accident came two days after the government issued flood warnings due to heavy rain pounding several parts of the East African country. The ongoing rain has continued to wreak havoc across the country, leaving hundreds homeless after several rivers in western Kenya burst their banks.

According to the Kenya Meteorological Department, the short rainy season that began in October is expected to end later this month, with above-average rainfall forecast for many parts of the country.

Earlier this year, unusual seasonal rainfall, compounded by the El Nino weather pattern, caused chaos in many parts of Kenya, a country that is highly vulnerable to climate change.

More than 300 people were killed, 188 injured and 38 missing, while more than 293,200 people were displaced and nearly 306,520 affected by heavy rain and flooding in Kenya between March and June, according to the Kenya National Disaster Operation Center.

(Cover: Overflowed waters of Turkana Lake, the largest desert lake in the world, in Rift Valley, Kenya, November 16, 2024. /CFP)