Rescuers recovered four more bodies on Sunday, raising the landslide death toll in western Kenya to 26, but search operations were paused after flash floods in the Chesongoch area. Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said 25 people remain missing and the military deployed four aircraft to reach the isolated site. The government is airlifting relief supplies and exam papers, will cover medical bills for more than 30 injured people, and urged residents in high-risk zones to move to safer ground.
Flash floods halt rescue after Kenya landslide kills 26; 25 still missing
Rescuers recovered four more bodies on Sunday, raising the landslide death toll in western Kenya to 26, but search operations were paused after flash floods in the Chesongoch area. Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said 25 people remain missing and the military deployed four aircraft to reach the isolated site. The government is airlifting relief supplies and exam papers, will cover medical bills for more than 30 injured people, and urged residents in high-risk zones to move to safer ground.
22:32, 02.11.2025Environment
Flash floods halt rescue after Kenya landslide kills 26
The death toll from a landslide in western Kenya rose to 26 on Sunday after rescuers recovered four additional bodies, but search operations were suspended when flash floods struck the Chesongoch area in the Rift Valley.
Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said 25 people remain missing and that authorities have intensified search efforts. The military has deployed four aircraft to reach the area, which has been completely cut off after roads were washed away during Saturday's landslide.
Search teams were forced to abandon the site on Sunday after heavy runoff came down a nearby hill, making conditions too dangerous to continue. Heavy rains and flooding across several counties have displaced thousands of people.
The government has urged residents in flood- and landslide-prone areas to relocate to safer ground. Murkomen said the state will continue airlifting relief supplies to affected communities, including deliveries to 15 isolated schools, and will airlift ongoing national exam papers to candidates where needed.
Officials also said the government will cover medical bills for more than 30 injured people and resettle dozens of families whose homes were swept away.
'It is very sad that families have lost five to six immediate family members,' the minister told reporters.
Oscar Okum, regional manager for the Kenya Red Cross, warned that the Rift Valley remains vulnerable to further mudslides as rescue and recovery work continues under unstable conditions.
'While conducting search, recovery and rescue, we have seen roads previously cleared being affected again by mudslides. It is still an active situation — we urge community members to move to safer ground for their safety, lives and livelihoods,'
Relief agencies and the military are coordinating air and ground support, but officials warned that continued heavy rains could hamper access and recovery efforts in the coming days.