EU donates funds to support 150,000 Kenyans against risks of flooding

NAIROBI, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) on Friday donated 6.5 million shillings (about 59,722 U.S. dollars) to support 150,000 Kenyans against the risks of flooding.

A statement from the EU released in Nairobi said the funds will help prevent an imminent dam spillage, which could potentially displace thousands of families along the swelling Turkwell dam in northern Kenya.

The funding, the EU said, has been channeled to the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) to help evacuate communities at risk of flooding.

"It is part of the EU's overall contribution to the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)," said the EU statement.

The bloc said it was reacting to rising water levels in the dam that has reached 1,147.93 meters against a maximum height of 1,150 meters, leaving only 2.07 meters to spillage.

Kenya Red Cross Society will support the evacuation of families closer to the dam, identify and prepare evacuation sites, set up first-aid posts, allocate and disseminate emergency numbers for people to call, among other things.

Built 35 years ago, the Turkwell dam has never filled up to its capacity but over the last two months, the water levels of the reservoir have risen to critical heights following heavy rains in two consecutive seasons.