Update: On September 6, 2019, The National Construction Authority suspended the repair and/or construction of the water pan until the Chief Engineer submitted an Environmental Impact Assesment report.
A dam that cost the government Ksh100 million and commissioned by Agriculture and Irrigation CS Mwangi Kiunjuri barely four months ago collapsed on Tuesday, September 3 raising serious queries about the ministry.
The Daily Nation reported that the Karai Dam which was built by the National Irrigation Board and commissioned in April burst at night sending panic among the residents of Mbuyu Sub-Location, Gwa Kung’u in Nyandarua County.
The dam failure has, in part, been attributed to the heavy downpour that the area has been experiencing over the past few days.
The area residents narrated how lucky they were that the water from the new 100,000-cubic-metre dam, drained to the adjacent colonial check dam.
“We are very lucky to be alive and also because of the fact that the dam burst at night and the water was collected by the colonial check dam. We thank God that the bursting was not disastrous,” Ms Margaret Wairimu, a resident, is quoted by the Daily Nation.
The residents also called for the arrest of the contractor and the engineers who were in charge of the project.
“We are wondering if there were engineers on the site when all this shoddy work was being done. We want the government to take action against the contractor, for carrying out shoddy work and endangering people’s lives,” Dr. Simon Kanyingi, a local leader, told the publication.
They also pointed a finger of blame to the government for failing to inspect whether the dam's structure had met all regulatory requirements before commissioning it.
Nyandarua County Commissioner, Boaz Cherutich, claimed that the contractor would be called back to the site to repair the dam.
Below is the video of the aftermath courtesy of the Daily Nation.
