Kisumu — An early warning system for flood management has been stationed at Nyando River to help prevent the devastating effects of floods in the area.
The Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) a body representing an alliance of contries sharing the Nile River, which Kenya is part of, handed over the hydrological monitoring system.
NBI Executive Director Dr Florence Adongo said the delivery of the equipment is part of the recommendations of the Council of Ministers that constitutes NBI.
Adongo said the machine has the capacity to send signals indicating the rising water levels in River Nyando.
"The machine captures data every ten minutes and relays it to our offices for analysis," she said.
Nyando River bursts its banks causing massive flooding in what has become an annual occurrence. The floods have led to destruction of farmlands and caused deaths to both humans and animals.
The system will help to communicate immediate danger and offer an opportunity to alert people early to move to higher grounds before floods strike.
Speaking to the press in Nyando during the installation of the machine at Ogilo Bridge along Nyando River on Thursday, Adongo said the system will relay information will to Kisumu, Nairobi and Entebbe where NIB headquarters are located.
Coordinated response
The machine uses satellites to transmit accurate data about water levels in the river, with Adongo saying there is no need of visiting the machine to collect captured data.
"Our technical people will then keep track of the behavior of the water," she said promising to liase with the government in order to warn communities prompty in case of imminent flooding
Calvins Wara, an NBI hydrologis, said the initiative had installed similar equipment in five other rivers within the Kenyan territory to monitor water levels.
Wara said NBI also shares information with relief organizations including the Kenya Red Cross to support their response and planning.
"We are targeting water points emptying into the River Nile, we are doing this to get information to help our communities and cushion them from flooding effects," he said.
During the installation, Chairman of Nyando River Water Users' Association Nicholas Awande hailed the system as key to averting devastating effects of floods.
"The river bursting its banks has led to many schools not opening, families losing their property, but now, with this machine, we are certain that the damage will be minimized," said Awande.
