The body of an eighty six year old woman has been found eighteen days after her home was hit by a landlside in the village of Gakira in Murang'a County, Kenya, on Monday 25 April 2016. Tabitha
Njeri had been missing since the incident, which swept away two homesteads as well as a stand of Eucalyptus trees, two cows and several thousand Tea bushes. Ms Njeri was last seen near a Cattle pen that was destoryed by the incident, prompting a search operation that lasted over two weeks and which involved members of the Kenya Red Cross Society and the Murang'a County Government.
The scene of the 25 April 2016 Gakira landslide. The Star.
The incident happened after several weeks of heavy rain in the area. Landslides are a common problem after severe weather events, as excess
pore water pressure can overcome cohesion in soil and sediments,
allowing them to flow like liquids. Approximately 90% of all landslides
are caused by heavy rainfall. Murang'a typically recieves over 300 mm of rainfall in April, the county's wettest month, and falls within one of the area's two rainy seasons. This two rainy seasons per year pattern is typical in equatorial
countries, with rainy seasons around the equinoxes and dry seasons
around the solstices.
See also...
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