There is an emergency on the banks of the Galana River, from Tsavo East National Park to the outskirts of Malindi.
The level of the watercourse has swollen considerably, not only because of the rainfall in the coastal region, but above all because of the rainfall in the north of the country, which has poured, also through various dams, onto the Galana and its outfalls. The river, which in the vicinity of Malindi is called the Sabaki, is no stranger to flooding during the rains, but this almost always happened during the big rainy season, i.e. from April to June.

Now, from videos and photos circulating on social media and in the chats of various Malindi groups and safari agencies, the situation is alarming. In April 2018, the flooding of the Galana had caused unprecedented damage to Malindi's hinterland and savannah.
In addition to crop fields and local huts, the fury of the waters had washed away literally all the lodges and safari tented camps on the banks. From the farthest away in Tsavo, the historic Galdessa and Bigi Camps (the latter never rebuilt) to the closest just outside the entrance to the National Park, Buffalo, Kulalo, the beautiful Shoroa (later rebuilt) and part of Doa Doa.

The whole country is at the mercy of the swollen watercourses and seasonal lakes, even the Mombasa-Malindi road, already interrupted at Mtwapa a few days ago and then reopened, with the road always problematic also because of works, is now closed again before Kilifi, between Vipingo and Takaungu, because of the precariousness of the Mbogolo bridge. This causes endless queues, also due to the lack of alternative roads. To go to Kilifi, Watamu and Malindi from Mombasa it is now always better to go via Mazeras, heading towards Nairobi, and then via Kaloleni

The floods, however, unfortunately do not only affect tourism, the river five years ago invaded agricultural fields and submerged huts, causing hundreds of homeless in the Malindi and Magarini districts. The Italian community, on the initiative of Malindikenya.net, worked with the Red Cross, collecting more than two thousand euros from readers, to which were added donations from some entrepreneurs in Malindi and Watamu, of mattresses, medicines and food for the displaced.
Let us hope that this time there will be no need.