Two schools in Nyatike, Migori county, have been temporarily closed after they were flooded because of heavy rains and backflow of water from Lake Victoria.
Angugo Primary School and Angugo Secondary School were closed as students and teachers could not access them due to the flooding.
Both schools share a fence and are located in North Kadem ward within Nyatike constituency.
Other schools affected are Kabuto primary and Modi primary, Modi secondary, Agenya secondary and Lwanda secondary.
“We have seven learning institutions in the area that are affected by floods. We have a team that is assessing the situation on the ground,” Migori county commissioner Boaz Cherutich said.
Cherutich said a team comprising the Kenya Red Cross, education officials and the local administration had been dispatched to “assess the situation and visit the affected schools.”
“We are seeking findings which will help us plan to relocate the pupils to neighbouring schools,” he said.
Cherutich said makeshift classrooms have been set up to help students continue with learning.
Angugo secondary principal Joseph Serena said his administration has instructed learners to stay at home until they find a solution to the problem.
“On Monday, I had to access my office to give a report to my bosses on the situation at the school and gumboots have become irrelevant because the water reaches the waistline," he said.
Nyatike MP Tom Odege urged the government to construct dykes and two dams in the area to control flooding.
“The government established a dyke on River Kuja and this hasn't helped much since one dyke cannot direct all the water to the lake but instead has left those on the side without a dyke more affected by floods,” he told the Star on the phone.
"The dykes and dams ought to have been constructed by the National Irrigation Authority but this has not been possible due to limited funding, we need more funding for this.”
More than 800 families have been homeless for close to a month after River Kuja broke its banks and flooded most villages.
Edited by A.N
