• Upgrading the drainage system properly probably would require demolishing some buildings, City Hall has said.
• Successive administrations have failed, NMS is working on the problem but it will take a long time.
Image: COURTESY
Before every rainy season, residents' fondest wish is that the drainage system would be fixed. But they know it won't happen.
And so every year they wade, slog, hop, skip and jump to cross flooded streets, or use a trolley puller to make the passage in the rainy season.
The rains expose the old, damaged, clogged and overflowing drainage system built for a much smaller population about 100 years ago.
Roads turn into rivers where boats would help with the crossing.
This situation persists despite millions having been allocated since the first county government was formed in 2013.
NMS is working on the problem but it will take a long time. It already completely rebuilt drainage for Mogadishu Road, from scratch; it's clearing debris from around drainage systems so rubbish doesn't get washed down.
In late February, it began expanding 400km of sewer line in Nairobi county.
Still, it's a drop in the ocean.
When the rain beats down, major roads are awash with water.
None is one is spared — neither posh estates or informal settlements. Kilimani, Parklands, South C , Westlands to Eastlands areas of Embakasi, Umoja, Korogocho, Utawala and slums. All are victims of the same inadequate system.
“We are used to the floods whenever it rains so it does not come as a surprise, only the amount of water varies," Donholm resident Thomas Biko said.
“Our worry is why the government never takes steps to look into the drainage issue before the rainy season,” Umoja resident Lucy Gathoni, said.
The Central Business District is also affected. Tom Mboya and Ronald Ngala streets and sections of Moi Avenue are problem areas.
Only trolley pullers are pleased because they charge Sh20 to Sh30 to assist commuters to cross roads.
Millions allocated, outcome zero
Under former Nairobi Governors Evans Kidero and Mike Sonko, million had been allocated to fix the flooding problem.
The impact has been negligible.
Seven months after winning the governor's seat, Sonko declared on March 15, 2018, that his predecessor, Kidero, had squandered Sh10 billion set aside to clear the drainage system. Kidero has denied misuse of funds.
In his election manifesto, Sonko had promised to provide provide drainage unclogging jobs to unemployed youths within his first 100 days.
In the same month, City Hall and the Directorate of Urban and Nairobi Metropolitan Development announced they would spend Sh194 million to address the flooding problem.
Out of funds, Sh32 million was to improve the drainage system in the county and put up measures to mitigate the effects of the heavy rains.
City Hall also announced that together with the national government it would construct major outfalls and rehabilitate drainage systems across the city.
Areas identified for rehabilitation included Catherine Ndereba Road, Lang’ata South Road, Kayole Spine Road, Popo Road, Mai Mahiu Road, Kawangware box culverts along Macharia Road, Kawangware 46-Muslim Primary School Road and Jonathan Ng’eno Road drainages.
A month later on April 11, 2018, Sh25 million was spent on a flusher machine to unblock drains.
The machine was unveiled in April by CS for Transport James Macharia and Governor Sonko.
It was part of programmes funded by the World Bank under the Nairobi Metropolitan Services Improvement Project.
The project started in December 2012 and was expected to be completed by end of May 2019.
The whole project cost about Sh500 million and Nairobi alone was allocated 75 per cent of the total.
However, since then the machine has not been seen at work in the downtown area as the rain pours down.
Image: COURTESY
City Hall planners say the physical planning of the city dates back to post-Independence when designs were based on population and growth was not seriously factored in.
To upgrade and realign the drainage systems, some buildings have to be brought down, planners have said.
County chief officer for roads Fredrick Karanja sewer lines are usually designed to always flow half-full.
"We need to invest in a storm water master plan for the entire city, which is lacking," he said.
"Inadequate design of storm water systems automatically contributes to flooding. A big investment is required to separate the storm water drainage and the sewer lines to stop the overflow, especially in the CBD," he explained.
In most of their projects within Nairobi, the Kenya Urban Roads Authority has attempted to set up drainage systems on roadsides.
However, drains are also blocked by activities such as building kiosks on road reserves over drainage systems and selling building materials such as sandstone, ballast and timber. Some of this ends up in drains.
City residents also dump solid waste in drainage systems, blocking the flow of water. Plastic carrier bags may have been banned, but that doesn't mean they're completely gone. And residents dump other solid waste in the drains.
(Edited by V. Graham)