Flash floods in Nairobi kill 10, disrupt flights at major airport

By Thomas Mukoya and Monica Mwangi

NAIROBI, March 7 (Reuters) – Aid workers pulled bodies from floodwaters across Nairobi on Saturday after overnight flash floods killed at least 10 people, swept away dozens of cars and disrupted flights at East Africa’s biggest airport, authorities said.

In the industrial neighbourhood of Grogan, security guard John Lomayan, 34, looked at the body of an elderly man he recognised – a roadside egg seller – trapped beneath a car that had been washed away when the Nairobi River burst its banks.

“I saw him being carried by the water from up there,” he said, gesturing up the road. “We didn’t know where he had gone. It is only now that we see him under the car”.

A Reuters reporter saw three bodies pulled from underneath cars. Police said 10 people had been confirmed dead so far.

Scientists say global warming is worsening floods and droughts across East Africa by concentrating rainfall into shorter, more intense bursts. A 2024 World Weather Attribution study found climate change had made devastating rains in the region twice as likely as before.

Kenya Airways said the rains had disrupted flights to Nairobi and forced some to divert to the coastal city of Mombasa.

“So many cars, so much stuff, I don’t know. Everything was just (washed away). All of the water (came) … from that river,” shocked resident Cedric Mwanza said, referring to the Nairobi River.

(Writing by Tim Cocks. Editing by Mark Potter)