At least 62 people have been killed — including eight children — since devastating flash floods swept through Kenya's capital Nairobi and other parts of the country beginning on the night of March 6, 2026, with the death toll continuing to rise as rescue teams search flooded neighbourhoods, vehicles, and waterways for additional victims.
Kenya's Ministry of Interior and National Administration confirmed the updated toll on Friday March 13, 2026, in a statement that broke down the casualties by gender and region. Of the 62 dead, 46 were men, eight were women, and eight were children. The capital Nairobi bore the heaviest toll with 33 deaths, followed by the Eastern region with 17, the Rift Valley with 7, Nyanza and the Coast with 2 each, and Central Kenya with 1.
Reuters, citing Kenyan police in a Saturday March 14 update, confirmed the 62-death toll and added that more than 2,000 families have been displaced across Kenya — with intense rain continuing in several regions, raising fears the toll will climb further in the days ahead. Nine people remain officially missing, with rescue teams still conducting active search operations across 18 affected counties.
How The Disaster Began — Nairobi River Bursts Its Banks
The flooding began during the night of Thursday March 6 into Friday March 7, 2026, after exceptionally heavy rainfall caused the Nairobi River to burst its banks — sending floodwaters surging through roads, residential neighbourhoods, and commercial areas across the city in a matter of hours.
The Kenya Meteorological Department had issued a warning on February 25 forecasting heavy rainfall across several regions — including the central highlands and the Lake Victoria basin — with rainfall exceeding 20 millimetres within 24 hours expected in some areas. Despite this warning, the scale and speed of the flooding overwhelmed drainage systems across multiple Nairobi neighbourhoods including South C, South B, and Nairobi West — leaving roads submerged, sweeping away dozens of vehicles, and stranding hundreds of motorists in floodwaters in the middle of the night.
The victims died primarily from two causes: drowning — swept away by fast-moving floodwaters in streets, vehicles, and homes — and electrocution from damaged power lines that fell into floodwaters and turned entire streets into lethal death traps. By the end of March 7, the government reported 25 deaths nationwide. By March 8, that figure had risen to 43. By March 13, it stood at 62 — and rescue teams were still searching.
Nairobi Airport Disrupted — Flights Diverted To Mombasa
The floods caused chaos far beyond the streets of Nairobi. Jomo Kenyatta International Airport — East Africa's biggest and busiest airport, serving millions of passengers annually — was also disrupted, with flights diverted to the coastal city of Mombasa as the flooding made normal operations at the airport unsafe.
Major roads across Nairobi were rendered impassable — including key arterial routes used by commuters, businesses, and emergency vehicles. Power outages hit multiple neighbourhoods as the flooding damaged electrical infrastructure. Water supply lines were disrupted. Schools in affected areas were closed, affecting thousands of students.
In the counties beyond Nairobi, flooding was reported across 18 counties including Bungoma, Kajiado, Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Kisumu, Kwale, Makueni, Migori, Murang'a, Nakuru, and Tharaka-Nithi — underscoring that this was not just a Nairobi problem but a nationwide disaster. Impassable roads and damaged bridges isolated entire communities. Farms were destroyed. Markets and businesses were submerged. Infrastructure that took years and millions of shillings to build was wiped out overnight.
12,338 People Displaced — Families Sleeping In Shelters
According to the most recent figures from Kenya's National Disaster Management Unit, the floods have affected more than 10,000 households — with 12,338 people officially displaced and forced to flee their homes to seek shelter in safer areas. Eight homes have been officially confirmed as damaged, though the actual number of damaged structures is expected to be far higher as assessment teams reach more remote and still-flooded areas.
The Kenya Red Cross Society confirmed it has been conducting search and rescue operations and assisting stranded residents — working alongside the Kenya Defence Forces, which deployed a military rescue unit to support emergency services. A multi-agency response team comprising the National Police Service and humanitarian organisations has been coordinating field operations from Nairobi.
Nairobi County Government took the unusual step of announcing a one-month waiver on levies and approvals required for property repair works following the floods. Acting County Secretary Godfrey Akumali said the waiver was aimed at enabling residents and businesses to quickly restore flood-damaged properties — removing bureaucratic barriers that would normally slow down reconstruction.
President Ruto Pledges Government Support
President William Ruto responded to the floods with a public statement expressing solidarity with affected Kenyans and pledging government support. "My government stands in solidarity with every citizen affected," Ruto said, adding that his administration was "acting swiftly to alleviate further suffering and safeguard lives."
The President also pledged to cover the medical expenses of Kenyans injured in the floods — a specific commitment that will provide some financial relief to flood victims facing hospital bills. However, Ruto acknowledged a deeper, longer-term problem — that Kenya's infrastructure needs significant investment to reduce the vulnerability of its cities and communities to flooding. "We need to improve our infrastructure to reduce the risk of such events in the future," he said — a statement that carries particular weight given that Kenya experienced similarly devastating floods in April-May 2024, when weeks of intense rainfall killed hundreds of people and displaced hundreds of thousands across the country.
Health Warning — Cholera And Malaria Risk Rising
Beyond the immediate death toll, Kenya's health authorities have issued urgent warnings about the rising risk of water-borne diseases — particularly cholera and malaria — in the aftermath of the flooding. Contaminated water supplies and stagnant floodwaters left behind in streets, compounds, and drainage systems create ideal conditions for the rapid spread of both diseases.
Cholera outbreaks following flooding are a recurring crisis in East Africa — one that often claims more lives in the weeks after a flood than the flood itself. Malaria follows the same pattern, with stagnant water providing breeding grounds for mosquitoes across urban and rural areas simultaneously. Kenya's health system — already stretched by the dual pressures of serving a rapidly growing urban population and managing the aftermath of the 2024 floods — faces a significant challenge in preventing a disease crisis from compounding the humanitarian disaster already underway.
The Kenya Meteorological Department has forecast persistent heavy rainfall through the early part of the long rains season — which typically runs from March to May — meaning the risk of further flooding, further deaths, and further displacement remains very real in the weeks ahead. Authorities have warned that the death toll could continue to rise as rescue operations reach more areas and more bodies are recovered from floodwaters.
Why Kenya Keeps Flooding — A Structural Problem
Kenya's recurring flooding crisis is not simply a weather problem. It is a development problem — rooted in decades of unplanned urban growth, inadequate drainage infrastructure, illegal construction in flood-prone areas, destruction of wetlands and natural water absorption zones, and a failure to invest sufficiently in flood-resistant infrastructure despite repeated disasters.
Nairobi — a city of more than four million people — was originally designed for a fraction of its current population. Its drainage systems, roads, and flood management infrastructure were built for a different era and a different city. As Nairobi has grown rapidly into one of Africa's largest metropolises, the investment in drainage and flood management has not kept pace. The result is a city that floods catastrophically almost every rainy season — killing people, destroying property, and disrupting the economy.
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja acknowledged the structural nature of the problem in a Citizen TV interview, noting that the drainage challenges could not be solved quickly — and arguing that what Nairobi needed was the financing to develop its infrastructure to international standards. Whether that financing will materialise — and arrive before the next rainy season — is a question Nairobi's millions of residents are waiting anxiously to answer.
In Pidgin: Kenya Flood Don Kill 62 People — Including 8 Children
Heavy flooding don kill at least 62 people for Kenya since March 6, 2026 — including 8 children. Nairobi, the capital city, record the highest number of deaths with 33 people dead. Eastern region get 17 dead, Rift Valley 7, and smaller numbers for other parts of the country.
The flood start when heavy rain cause Nairobi River to burst its banks for the night of March 6. The water sweep through roads, houses and neighbourhoods — killing people by drowning and by electrocution from fallen power lines. Airport flights get diverted to Mombasa. Roads close. Power cut off. More than 12,000 people lose their homes.
President Ruto promise say government go cover medical bills for flood victims and say Kenya must build better infrastructure to stop this kind of disaster from happening again. But Kenyans don hear this promise before — same floods, same deaths, same promises — every rainy season.
Health authorities also warn say cholera and malaria dey coming — because of contaminated water and stagnant flood pools wey mosquitoes go use as breeding ground. And the rains no don stop. More flooding fit still come before the long rains season finish for May.
📲 Follow Hotgist9ja on WhatsApp for instant breaking news updates: Click Here To Join Our WhatsApp Channel
Sources: Reuters, Xinhua, The Star Kenya, People Daily Kenya, Citizen Digital, Kenya Ministry of Interior — March 13-14, 2026