By Ebi Kesiena
Kenyan Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome on Saturday called for caution from motorists ahead of the reopening of schools next week.
As primary and secondary schools prepare to reopen next week, the onset of the rainy season raises safety concerns for many, particularly as some schools struggle with flooding caused by recent heavy rains.
Koome said while police and other multi-agency teams have been deployed along the major highways, he called upon all motorists to cooperate with the law enforcement officers to improve our service delivery.
Koome said the ongoing heavy rains and floods being experienced in the country have not only claimed lives but also rendered some roads and rivers impassable.
Similarly, he said, it is expected that road traffic, both human and vehicular, will be very heavy next week.
“In the best interest of children that will be travelling back to school, and for the safety of the general public, the National Police Service would like to caution all motorists and boda boda riders to be extra vigilant on the roads, and strictly comply with traffic regulations and rules,” he said.
The government has reported 76 fatalities and thousands displaced due to the relentless heavy rainfall sweeping across the nation. Tragically, the death toll climbed to over 80 on Saturday, with a devastating incident in Makueni (Former Eastern Province of Kenya) where a lorry was swept away by surging floodwaters.
Furthermore, the government has also scaled up measures to mitigate disaster caused by the ongoing enhanced rains and floods, even as the meteorological department warned that heavy rainfall will continue through to the weekend.
