IMPACTS Africa
Kenya
		[ Heavy Rains ]
		[ Disease | Benefits ]

Heavy Rains

When El Niņo reversed the trade winds, weather was affected all over the world. Even though El Niņo sent the warm spot to South America, places such as Kenya in Africa were still affected. One way that this country was affected was the heavy rains of this year. This led to disasters such as flooding and mudslides, but also had some benefits (see below).

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Disease Since there was a lot of rain and floods, some parts of Kenya were cut off from the rest of the country. This blocked efforts to control some spreading epidemics. The water lying around from the heavy rains is a great hangout for mosquitoes, so it makes it easier to spread diseases and epidemics. One disease that broke out this year because of the good spreading conditions was Rift Valley Fever, which killed more than five hundred people. Back to Top

Benefits

Despite the horrors that El Niņo brought to people all over the world, there were actually some benefits. The wet season from October to December, for example, was good for the short season crops of Kenya and other countries in East Africa. Also the rains were good for the wildlife in the skies and the lakes of Kenya. The number of flamingoes migrating to waters of Lake Nakuru in the Rift Valley went down a few years ago, but the heavy rains from El Niņo filled the lake with 1.5 million flamingoes and enough fish to feed them all. Mammals also have found plenty of food. Near the banks of Nakuru, well-fed lions have the pleasure of watching their healthy cubs play in the long grass.

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