Deadly disaster: Open sewers in Nairobi that no one cares to cover

A boy jumps past a sewer-flooded house at Embakasi village in Juakali on November 19, 2021. (Dennish Ochieng/Standard) A family in Nairobi's South B area has been thrown into mourning after their son aged 7 plunged into an open sewer. It is reported that the boy was walking home in the evening hours of June 14, 2024 when he fell into the deep sewer around Mater hospital. His body was later recovered the following day in Ruai treatment area. The incident comes barely three months since a police officer on a rescue mission in Nairobi's Kamukunji area fell into a manhole. Constable David Chesire slipped into the uncovered sewer line and is said to have been swept away by floods on March 24. It was raining heavily on the fateful day when Chesire, attached to Muoroto police post, which is adjacent to Machakos Country Bus Station, noticed a mother and four children struggling to wade through the raging waters. Instinctively, the officer swung into action to assist the woman and children to safety. After successfully completing his mission, that was the last time Chesire was seen alive. His body has never been retrieved to date as family continues holding onto hope. The officer would be alive today if the manhole was covered. The two cases paint a picture of how city residents are exposed to danger owing to open sewer systems in several estates. These units mostly channel human waste from homes to the main treatment plant in Ruai, in Nairobi's Eastlands. But owing to growing population, some investors have resorted to digging septic tanks in their compounds which are emptied by exhausters whenever they are full. A spot check by The Nairobian around many estates in Nairobi not only paints a poor state of the drainage system with many sewer holes that remain uncovered. Residents say the metallic lids used to cover the sewer holes are frequently stolen and sold to scrap metal dealers. These gaping holes are situated along main roads, playgrounds and behind residential areas posing dangers to road users, children and even animals. And during the rainy season, some of these gaping holes collect water to the brim making them invisible deathtraps. Notably some of them are found in old, populated estates such as Makongeni, Kimathi, Bahati, Jericho, Buru-buru, South B, South C, Eastleigh and other parts of the city. "Some of these sewer lines have never been open for many years, sometimes the stench that wafts through is unbearable," Alice Muge, a resident of Bahati said. "They are very dangerous during rainy seasons because they collect rain water thus making it risky for pedestrians, even in some areas vehicles plunge in," Muge said. Several residents say sometime due to blockages, the spillage from these units end up in their backyard. This was the case recently in Embakasi's Jua Kali area where a six-year-old boy who fell while playing with his friends was rescued by a passerby. Later, angry residents sealed the manhole with soil, which worsened the sewerage problem in the neighbourhood. Recently, Nairobi county government blamed the scrap dealers for accepting to buy the metallic lids that are stolen from these holes. Nairobi County Disaster Management Chief Officer Brawel Simiyu blames vandalism for the sad state of affairs. "It happens because of vandalism by people looking to make quick proceeds from selling the metallic covers," Simiyu said. He said there has been collaboration between them and police to curb theft of metallic covers. It was noted that the culprits who lift the lids also destroy the whole infrastructure like roads signage and even security lights. Urban planner Mairura Omwenga argues that his happens due to inadequate capacity of the county government to inspect and maintain the sewer lines. Omwenga argues that this happens because the amount of funds allocated for maintenance are meager yet millions are spent to put up the units. "We are only happy to build something but operating and maintenance is rarely considered. We build something and forget it," he says. For this reason, he points out that it even gets hard to replace that manhole that has been stolen or broken. "Just like the road that has a pothole, it is hard to be fixed until the whole road is damaged, it is ironic that money is raised to build but not to maintain a facility and that is the culture that runs across public infrastructure works," Omwenga argued. He noted that stealing of metallic lids used to cover sewer holes and manholes is more of a social cultural issue brought by many factors, including economic challenges. "When people are poor, they start stealing small things like those but we must be on the front-line to ensure that these facilities are not tampered with because anyone can plunge in when left exposed," he added. Owing to this vice former President Uhuru Kenyatta banned scrap metal trade in the country sometimes in 2022. Some of the targeted installations included transformers, guard rails and utility infrastructure, among others, which he described as economic sabotage. But only months later, the ban was lifted with a caveat that only licensed traders would be allowed back to the scrap metal trade. The government sought to regulate and allow only duly registered and licensed scrap metal businesses.

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