Dam in Kenya bursts, killing 47

At least 47 people have been killed after a dam burst its banks in Kenya’s Rift Valley.

Officials say the Patel dam in Solai, 190km north-west of the capital Nairobi burst around 9:00pm Wednesday local time, sending a deluge of water that has displaced thousands of people from their homes.

The floodwaters also swept away power lines and other buildings, including a school, according to local witnesses.

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The BBC says that the full extent of the damage is “not yet clear”, and that local officials fear that the death toll could continue to rise as the search and rescue operation continues.

Lee Kinyanjui, the governor of Nakuru County where the incident took place, told CNN recent heavy rains were to blame for the incident, and that the victims were “mostly workers and small-scale farmers”.

In a statement, The United Nations Unocha disaster agency said that the flooding could worsen, as more heavy rain is set to hit the Rift Valley and the Lake Victoria basin in the coming weeks.