The body of a police officer who drowned as he rescued a family in Nairobi’s Kamukunji area is still missing four days later, police said.
Also missing is Constable David Chesire’s AK47 rifle which had 30 bullets then.
Rescue teams have been camping at a site where he drowned in flash floods and checked on the tunnel downstream in vain.
The teams demolished the entire place using excavators in search of the body.
Chesire was the only son in his family. His family has been camping at the scene where he drowned with the rescue team since Tuesday, officials said
Instead, they said they have recovered 11 bodies from various places in the city since the rains were experienced on Sunday night and Monday morning.
According to officials, the toll is expected to rise as more families have reported their friends and kin are missing following the flooding that was reported.
Nairobi Regional Police Commander Adamson Bungei said emergency teams collected 11 bodies from various places in the city on Monday alone.
He added they had not located Chesire’s body if he is dead but efforts to search for him are on.
“The teams are still on the ground in efforts to collect any body that may be found. We have camped where he drowned in vain,” he said.
Chesire and his colleagues had responded to a structure where occupants were trapped and managed to rescue them.
As he left, he stepped into an open manhole and drowned in the raging waters.
It is believed he was washed downstream in the sewerage.
The police boss said they had mobilized several emergency service providers to respond to various places and help in attending to those affected.
Kenya Red Cross said approximately 1,200 households had been identified as affected in various informal settlements with Mukuru Kwa Njenga and Mukuru Kwa Reuben being among the worst hit.
Some 52 households in Kayole were evacuated to safety after their homes were submerged by floodwaters.
They are currently being hosted at Kayole-Soweto Social Hall.
