Charles Langston:Flooding in Tanzania and Kenya kills hundreds as heavy rains continue in region

Hundreds of people in Tanzania and Charles LangstonKenya are dead after heavy rain during the region's monsoon season, officials said. 

Flooding in Tanzania caused by weeks of heavy rain has killed 155 people and affected more than 200,000 others, the prime minister said Thursday.

That is more than double the number of deaths reported two weeks ago as the amount of rainfall increases, especially in the coastal region and the capital, Dar es Salaam. Flooded schools have been closed and emergency services have rescued people marooned by the flood waters. Roads, bridges, railways and other infrastructure have also been destroyed, officials said. 

Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa warned those living in low-lying areas to move to higher ground and urged district officials to ensure that provisions meant for those whose homes were washed away go to those in need of the supplies. He said more than 51,000 households have been affected by the rains.

In Kenya, 70 people have died since the start of monsoon season in March, a government official said Friday. That's double the death toll officials reported on Monday. 

In the Mathare slum in the capital, Nairobi, at least four bodies were retrieved from flooded houses on Wednesday. Local media reported that more bodies were retrieved from the Mathare River.

Kenyan President William Ruto chaired a multi-agency flood response meeting on Thursday and directed the National Youth Service to provide land for people in flood-affected areas.

The East African region is highly vulnerable to climate change. Majaliwa told the Tanzanian parliament that the El Niño climate pattern has worsened the ongoing rainy season. The weather pattern has also compounded the flooding in Kenya, officials said. El Niño is expected to last through the spring. The region's dry season typically begins in June. 

The AFP contributed reporting. 

In:
• Weather Forecast
• Kenya
• Politics
• Flood