Thousands of refugees in danger from floodwater

The lives of about 17,000 people living in the Kakuma refugee camp, northwestern Kenya, are in danger from flooding caused by the merging of two seasonal rivers, the UN warned on Monday. The two rivers, the Taraich and the Nakabet, are expected to merge during the next rainy season in October which will lead to an island in the centre of the camp. The island could then collapse. "This is beyond an emergency. We know that 17,000 refugees' lives will be in danger unless we relocate them," said Cosmas Chanda, head of the UN refugee agency's office in Kakuma. "There are no other options, there's nothing we can do to prevent the two rivers from merging or to prevent the erosion of the river banks." UNHCR has appealed for funding to urgently move the refugees to the north of Kakuma camp, and is currently involved in negotiations with local elders regarding the allocation of new land. Despite recent friction between Sudanese refugees and the local Turkana community in which 12 people were killed, negotiations to secure a plot had been "very encouraging" so far, Chanda added. In return, the Turkana would benefit from new water supplies and the schools and facilities that would be constructed in the new area. About 17 metres of river bank around Kakuma refugee camp are lost each rainy season due to flooding and erosion.