WATCH: Brutal effect of Sunday’s heavy downpour on Nairobi’s Industrial Area companies
The heavy rains that lashed various parts of the country on March 24 at the start of the long rainy season have left hundreds of people in Nairobi County counting their losses.
In Nairobi’s Industrial Area, jobs have been lost and the hundreds of hustlers who usually turn up for casual work in the area were left helpless as they watched their bosses struggle to salvage their companies’ equipment stranded by the floods.
On Road A, off Enterprise Road, more than twenty companies were forced to suspend operations just to deal with the water menace.
Some of the affected businesses in the area are now calling for a long-term solution to the perennial problem that has caused them huge losses.
Illegal dumping on Enterprise Road has been identified as one of the causes of the flooding as it blocks the original channel that allows water to flow smoothly into the Nairobi River.
The Nairobi River Commission (NRC) has also been blamed for ignoring calls from residents and companies who have sought its help to open some of the points to allow the companies’ effluent to flow directly into the river.
One of the companies that has been forced to close down completely until further notice is Maxmile Tyres.
WATCH: Brutal effect of Sunday, March 24 heavy downpour on Nairobi’s Industrial Area companies.
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The company’s manager, Mr Aloyce Walaga, says: “We have lost business today. None of us are working in our factory today and we expect this to continue for a very long time unless this matter is resolved immediately”.
The high water levels knocked out some of the backup generators and damaged some of the materials in the warehouses.
The situation is the same at Printwell Industries Limited and Panaf Logistics Limited, where all printing materials were submerged.
Sharmila D’cunha, managing director of Printwell Industries Limited and Panaf Logistics Limited, says they have been facing this disaster for the past 20 years.
She attributes the problem to the encroachment of the Nairobi River, which has blocked some of the drains.
“We have tried to reach out to the authorities but they have fallen on deaf ears. The river has been encroached upon and nobody really cares about it,” complained Sharmila.
According to Sharmila, the damage they have witnessed has left them helpless after some of the insurance companies refused to take up the matter.
“All the machinery, all the engines, all the motors are submerged. The insurance companies are now refusing to insure us, what should we do? Should we send everyone home, should we shut down every time it rains?”
Elly Mwiki, managing director of Printwell Industries Limited, says they have made several attempts to find a solution with the Nairobi River Commission, but nothing has been forthcoming.
“There are over 50 people outside, no one can access the factory. We had a discussion with the Nairobi River Commission and the city council so that they can arrest his matter, but