Fisheries, public health, livestock and water officers from Kipipiri, Nyandarua county, have warned residents of Miharati against using water from Manunga Dam until its safety has been confirmed.
Residents use the water for both livestock and domestic purposes. On Thursday, unidentified people dumped hundreds of crayfish, most of which were dead, in the dam. This caused anxiety among locals and the officers went to the scene.
Joshua Bosire, the officer in charge of Kinangop and Kipipiri subcounties, said the dumping was done illegally.
He said both the fish and water from the dam will be analysed to ascertain if there is any form of contamination. “Fish samples will be taken to our laboratories to investigate if the fish have any elements unsafe for human beings like heavy metal,” Bosire said.
He said the person responsible could have introduced the fish in the dam for future fishing, or got suspicious of their quality and decided to dump them.
Officer in charge of public health Francis Kihuha said an alert has been issued against using the water.
