Farmers, businessmen, and residents of Tana Delta, Tana River County, are counting losses after floods resumed in the area, cutting off communication channels.
Several villages in the Delta have been marooned with more than ten cargo trucks stuck with fresh produce from farms after the raging waters swept in, making the areas inaccessible.
Business people who had come to buy watermelons from the farms told journalists that the lorries stuck in water lodged villages might be driven out sometime in August when the water is expected to have subsided hence, they are left counting losses.
Farmers on their part said that the traders had taken advantage of the situation and were buying the produce at Sh. 10 per kilogram, down from Sh. 25 shillings.
They also have to share boat transportation costs since the farms can only be accessed by boats which transport the produce to upstream areas of Oda, where they can be loaded onto waiting trucks for onward transportation to Nairobi and other upcountry towns.
Mr Bonea Kone, a farmer from Kone Masa village, said that he is counting losses worth Sh. 500,000 after the produce in his 16-acre farm got destroyed by the water from river Tana that spilt over to his farm.
His predicament is no different from that of Ibrahim Mohamed and Ibrahim Komoro, who lost tens of acres under green grass and watermelon.
Business people like Samuel Njenga and Esther Maina who said that they invested in Sh. 300,000 each to buy and transport the produce from Odhole Village, but his vehicle got stuck and is currently marooned in the water.
They are now calling on the national and county governments to respond to their plight and offer support such as helping them move the stuck lorries from the marooned villages.
Hassan Galgalo from Madingo village said that the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF), The National Youth Service (NYS) and the Kenya Red Cross have the capacity to help construct temporary bridges or floating bridges to enable the movement of the farm produce.
At least residents of 11 villages face imminent evacuation as the water levels continue to rise. They include Samicha, Kikomo, Semikaro, Odhole, Kone Masa, Nduru, Kipao, Onkolde, Oda, Ongonyo and Chara villages.
