The world-famous wildlife reserve is the latest area of Kenya to be affected by torrential rains that have claimed more than 170 lives and displaced more than 195,000 people across the nation.
Around 100 tourists were among those stranded in Kenya's
Maasai Mara game reserve on Wednesday amid ongoing floods that have devastated
the country.
Torrential rains, amplified by the El Nino weather pattern,
have battered the East African nation for weeks, claiming more than 170 lives,
blocking roads and sweeping away homes. More than 195,000 people have been
displaced.
The latest incident occurred when a river broke its banks in
the Maasai Mara reserve on Wednesday morning.
Local official Stephen Nakola told the AFP news agency that
"approximately 100 or more tourists" as well as workers had been
marooned by the flooding.
“That is the preliminary number as of now because some of
the camps are unaccessible,” he added.
The Maasai Mara wildlife reserve is a tourist magnet that is
home to the so-called “Big Five” – lions, elephants, rhinos, leopards and
buffalo.
Rescue operations underway
The Kenya Red Cross said it had rescued 61 people from camps
and lodges in the Maasai Mara by land and by air.
“In some camps, tents have been swept away and the Mara
bridge, linking the Mara Triangle and the Greater Mara, has been washed away,”
the Red Cross said on social media.
Search and rescue operations remain ongoing across the
country.
On Tuesday, President William Ruto ordered the military to
join the disaster response.
Ruto previously referred to Kenyans affected by the flooding
as “victims of climate change,” after the phenomenon exacerbated already-strong
weather patterns.