NAIROBI – A dam burst in a Kenyan town after weeks of heavy rain, causing “huge destruction” and deaths, a government official said on Thursday.

The burst happened in Solai, Nakuru county, 190 km northwest of the capital, Nairobi, late on Wednesday.

“The water has caused huge destruction of both life and property. The extent of the damage has yet to be ascertained,” Lee Kinyajui, governor of Nakuru, said in a statement.

READ: Heavy rains kill 100 in Kenya, 200,000 displaced: Red Cross

Kenya Red Cross said on Twitter it had rescued 39 people so far.

Kenya, like other countries in East Africa, has experienced heavy rain over the past two months.

The government said on Wednesday that the rain had killed 132 people and displaced 222,456 people in 32 counties since March.

AFP