The Kenya Red Cross Society wants the county and national government to declare Tana River as a disaster zone. Secretary General Abbas Gullet said the area was faced with many tragedies including the recent bloody clashes that left about 200 people dead and displaced over 40,000 people. The recent floods have also caused havoc and displaced thousands of residents.
Addressing journalists at Gamba area after touring the Internal Displaced victims for floods in Garsen Gullet said it's time the government allocated enough resources to the region so as to help the residents.
He spoke a time when over 3,507 victims of floods from 24 villages in Tanadelta are yet to be reached after their homes were marooned.The road networks were cut off and the only means to reach them is by boat or helicopter in order to evacuate and or help them with non food items and relief food.
The Garsen, Ijara Masalani road was completely cut off and residents have to use canoes to cross over to safety zones.
“This is a double tragedy, the county and central government should declare this area as a disaster zone and help the locals to recover and set up proper shelters so as to resume with their normal lives,’’ he said.
Gullet said the infrastructure of Tanadelta had completely been damaged by the floods currently and required enough resources for reconstruction to bring normalcy in the area.
The Kenya Red cross boss said the government should think for a permanent solution to the problems faced by the locals and allocates enough resources for development instead of just giving relief food.
“The days for giving handouts to the victims are long gone, we need to think of permanent solutions to the problems faced by the locals,’’ he said.
Gullet said both pastoralists and farmers would require support to begin their livelihoods afresh including vaccination for their cattle and seeds to resume farming activities. Already, the Kenya Red cross had supplied two mobile water treatment plants with a capacity of pumping 50 cubic meters each so as to enable the locals get clean drinking water.
At the same time he said a team of medical officers from the society had been dispatched to help provide medication to the victims adding that another group of locals were undergoing hygiene training to enable them help their people to prevent spread of diseases.
He was accompanied by United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator MS Gabriella Waaijman, Gisela Holman from IFRC, Dr Momamud Said the governor of Red Cross and area Deputy County
commissioner Mike Kimoko and other officials. Waaijman said her organization was willing to support victims of disster in the country.
The DC said they were working on all means to reach the victims who had been marooned. He said they had plenty of food to help the victims.