Two people narrowly escaped death after their car was swept away by flash floods into the Mashamba River in Makima ward, Embu County.
The raging waters swept away the car, a Toyota Probox, about a kilometre away. It took the combined efforts of hundreds of Makima residents to boost a tractor that was unable to pull the mangled car out of the river.
Residents, led by the area’s Member of the County Assembly (MCA), Philip Nzangi, urged the government to build a permanent bridge over the river, citing incidents of boda boda operators being swept away as they attempted to cross the river.
Residents accused the road contractors of doing a poor job, claiming that the engineers had left a ditch in the middle of the road drift connecting Makima and Mashamba shopping centres.
They also stated that officials administering KCSE exams must travel long distances to reach Mashamba Secondary School, which is frequently cut off by flash floods.
They also asked the government to improve road drifts across several rivers in the ward, which are dangerous when it rains.
