The extensive flooding in March of 2026 caused the closure of the Amboseli airstrip. The flooding was the most extensive since the 2020, though not as severe. The 2020 floods shut down air traffic for weeks, inundated Ol Tukai Lodge and drowned tourist circuits. The damage caused heavy losses to tour operators and hoteliers and costs to KWS in road repairs. In response to the disruptions, Ol Tukai Lodge called an emergency meeting of KWS, hoteliers and conservation organizations to assess the damage. The Amboseli Conservation Programme was I was asked report on the cause of the flooding and remedial action.
The report below concluded that the ultimate cause of the extreme flooding is the growth of farms and permanent pastoral settlements around the national park. Regular seasonal flooding, starting in 1992, has created a permanent flamingo lake in the centre of the park. The more immediate cause of flooding is the Namanga and Sultan Hamud roads blocking flash flooding along the natural drainage channels into Lake Amboseli.
The report concluded a permanent solution to the flooding lay widening the drainage channels across the two roads to allow the storm water to flow into Lake Amboseli. In the short term, the report recommended widening the drainage channels under the Namanga Road and deepening the natural trough leading into Simek Swamp to lessen the flooding.
The hoteliers, led by Ol Tukai, raised 900,000/= for KWS to undertake the short-term drainage works. KWS had no funds of its own to fuel the excavator to dig the trench. The excavations did alleviate extreme flooding until the prolonged heavy rains of 2026. Then, a week of heavy rains, followed by a 100 mm storm, overwhelmed the capacity of the ditching. Had KWS widened the two roads blocking the natural flow of water into Lake Amboseli, the extreme floods would have been prevented.
The technical Committee appointed to prepare a vision and strategy for Kajiado County to manage Amboseli raised concerns over the flooding in its 2024 report. The report urged the drainage channels on the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads be widened to avoid the extreme flooding. No action was taken by KWS for lack of funds allocated to undertake the task.
The two earlier reports on the Amboseli flooding are attached as background to the following report.
H.E Governor Joseph Ole Lenku asked me to take stock of the March flooding and report back on preventative measures. I flew down to Amboseli on 24th of March to record the flooding from the air. The following photos give a visual presentation of the floods.
The flash flooding in March stretched across the central portion of Amboseli National Park from the airstrip to Ol Tukai. Lengthy sections of tourist circuits around Longinye Swamp and the airstrip were submerged. Most of the drowned roads lie well below the ground surface due to continuous grading without any replacement murram to build them up again. The airstrip was also submerged but was serviceable by the time I flew down on 24th March. The roads to the airstrip were, however, under water, making it impossible for tourist vehicles to reach the airstrip.
The March flooding was extensive but far less so than in 2020. The airstrip drained within ten days rather than the weeks under water in 2020 floods. The rapid drainage was due to large part to the temporary KWS ditching siphoning off much of the flood waters into Lake Kioko and on to Lake Amboseli.
The ultimate cause of the extreme flooding results from the heavy permanent settlement on the higher ground surrounding the Amboseli Basin and national park. The worst floods cascade down the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro south of Namalog and flow through Kalunyet into Longinye Swamp, as seen in the photo below.
The flood waters flowing into Longinye would naturally drain into the Lake Amboseli along a series of shallow troughs. The natural flow has been blocked by the elevated Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads damming the natural flow. The damming has widened Longinye Swamp nearly twice its former width. The widening has drowned tourist circuits around Longinye and flooded parts of Ol Tukai Lodge, as seen below.
Conclusions
The conclusions I draw from the March aerial survey are much the same as those I made in the earlier reports attached. The extreme flooding is due to the heavy erosion arising from the impact of permanent settlement on the higher grounds surrounding the national park. The flooding would drain into Lake Amboseli were it not for the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Road blocking the natural drainage channels.
The extreme flooding, damage to the roads and disruption to tourism caused by the 2026 could have been avoided had KWS allocated funds to do the road works needed for the flash flood to drain into the natural drainage channels feeding Lake Amboseli. It is neither expensive nor a difficult job to breach the road works causing the flooding.
The remedial action would direct the flood waters along their natural drainage channels to the northern edge of the park and into Lake Amboseli. The restoration would create new swamps and provide water and grazing to the Maasai at the edge of the park rather than them having to drive livestock into the central viewing areas. The expanded swamps would also create more dry-season grazing for wildlife, and expand tourist circuits across the national park.
The chronic and persistent lack of funding KWS has allocated Amboseli has prevented the management from carrying out the plans outlined in the Amboseli National Park Management Plan 2020-2030. The roads, infrastructure and tourist facilities are severely degraded as a result, largely due to the extreme flooding. A full assessment of the damage, the cost of restoration and remediation action should be commissioned before Kajiado County assumes the management of the park, lest it be blamed for its degraded state.
First, I want to confirm my concerns expressed at the meeting of 13th February about the large influx of livestock into the Amboseli early this year, heightening the risks of extreme floods in the event of very heavy long rains. A count ACP commissioned in mid-January shows the cattle influx was over 140,000 animals, more than double the resident population. The degradation caused will increase the flood runoff considerably at a time the swamps have also been expanded by extra underground inflow from Kilimanjaro.
It was agreed at today’s meeting at Ol Tukai that KWS should proceed with the excavation works as soon as possible to ensure sufficient drainage capacity of flood waters before the long rains. More extensive works may be needed after the long rains when KWS is to BE allocate substantial funds for flood control in the new financial budget.
The short-term emergency plan estimated by KWS at 900,000/= will proceed as follows.
This report includes an additional note on the risks of further flooding if the drainage channels are not completed before the long rains of 2022.
Late 2021 and early 2022 have seen an enormous influx of cattle into the Amboseli area from Tanzania, Narok, the Rift, Namanga area and as far north as Simba due to drought conditions in these areas. The influx has furthered degraded the areas surrounding the park leaving it even more vulnerable to flooding than we experience in 2020 in the event of heavy long rains in the coming few months. This should add a note of urgency in moving ahead with flooding works before then to avoid the extreme damage to roads and visitation experienced in 2021.
The heavy rains in Kenya which began in September and continued through January caused extreme flooding in Amboseli National Park. By December the floods stretched from the Loitokitok to Namanga roads (see photos below) causing a closure of the airfield and viewing roads. Inbound air traffic was diverted to Tawi and Ol Doinyo Uas strips, resulting in transfer times to the lodges of up to three hours. The disruptions and tourist complaints carried in the social media led to cancellations and heavy revenue losses to the hotels and the Kenya Wildlife Service.
The lodges, led by Ol Tukai, called for a meeting in Amboseli on 18th January to see what could be done to open the airstrip, roads and solve the flooding problem. The meeting was chaired by the senior warden of Amboseli, Kenneth Nashu, and attended by KWS road engineers, Ol Tukai Serena and Ol Tukai lodge representatives, Amboseli Trust for Elephants and the Amboseli Conservation Program.
The warden noted that the flooding had grown worse in recent years, was causing extensive damage to the roads and threatened the future of tourism in the park. He asked the meeting to identify the source and cause of the flooding, restorative measures for the airfield and roads, and preventive measures to curb future floods. The lodge operators, raising their concerns about the disruptions to visitors and sharp drop in revenues, asked for emergency measures to restore the park.
Asked to give a background to the flooding, I made the following points and recommendations which I have supplemented with photos:
The central portion of Amboseli National Park showing the permanent swamps in dark green. The flood waters, shown in lighter green west of Ol Tukai, can be channeled into Lake Amboseli along the historical drainage lines stretching across the central plains into the lake.
The extensive flooding in March of 2026 caused the closure of the Amboseli airstrip. The flooding was the most extensive since the 2020, though not as severe. The 2020 floods shut down air traffic for weeks, inundated Ol Tukai Lodge and drowned tourist circuits. The damage caused heavy losses to tour operators and hoteliers and costs to KWS in road repairs. In response to the disruptions, Ol Tukai Lodge called an emergency meeting of KWS, hoteliers and conservation organizations to assess the damage. The Amboseli Conservation Programme was I was asked report on the cause of the flooding and remedial action.
The report below concluded that the ultimate cause of the extreme flooding is the growth of farms and permanent pastoral settlements around the national park. Regular seasonal flooding, starting in 1992, has created a permanent flamingo lake in the centre of the park. The more immediate cause of flooding is the Namanga and Sultan Hamud roads blocking flash flooding along the natural drainage channels into Lake Amboseli.
The report concluded a permanent solution to the flooding lay widening the drainage channels across the two roads to allow the storm water to flow into Lake Amboseli. In the short term, the report recommended widening the drainage channels under the Namanga Road and deepening the natural trough leading into Simek Swamp to lessen the flooding.
The hoteliers, led by Ol Tukai, raised 900,000/= for KWS to undertake the short-term drainage works. KWS had no funds of its own to fuel the excavator to dig the trench. The excavations did alleviate extreme flooding until the prolonged heavy rains of 2026. Then, a week of heavy rains, followed by a 100 mm storm, overwhelmed the capacity of the ditching. Had KWS widened the two roads blocking the natural flow of water into Lake Amboseli, the extreme floods would have been prevented.
The technical Committee appointed to prepare a vision and strategy for Kajiado County to manage Amboseli raised concerns over the flooding in its 2024 report. The report urged the drainage channels on the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads be widened to avoid the extreme flooding. No action was taken by KWS for lack of funds allocated to undertake the task.
The two earlier reports on the Amboseli flooding are attached as background to the following report.
H.E Governor Joseph Ole Lenku asked me to take stock of the March flooding and report back on preventative measures. I flew down to Amboseli on 24th of March to record the flooding from the air. The following photos give a visual presentation of the floods.
The flash flooding in March stretched across the central portion of Amboseli National Park from the airstrip to Ol Tukai. Lengthy sections of tourist circuits around Longinye Swamp and the airstrip were submerged. Most of the drowned roads lie well below the ground surface due to continuous grading without any replacement murram to build them up again. The airstrip was also submerged but was serviceable by the time I flew down on 24th March. The roads to the airstrip were, however, under water, making it impossible for tourist vehicles to reach the airstrip.
The March flooding was extensive but far less so than in 2020. The airstrip drained within ten days rather than the weeks under water in 2020 floods. The rapid drainage was due to large part to the temporary KWS ditching siphoning off much of the flood waters into Lake Kioko and on to Lake Amboseli.
The ultimate cause of the extreme flooding results from the heavy permanent settlement on the higher ground surrounding the Amboseli Basin and national park. The worst floods cascade down the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro south of Namalog and flow through Kalunyet into Longinye Swamp, as seen in the photo below.
The flood waters flowing into Longinye would naturally drain into the Lake Amboseli along a series of shallow troughs. The natural flow has been blocked by the elevated Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads damming the natural flow. The damming has widened Longinye Swamp nearly twice its former width. The widening has drowned tourist circuits around Longinye and flooded parts of Ol Tukai Lodge, as seen below.
Conclusions
The conclusions I draw from the March aerial survey are much the same as those I made in the earlier reports attached. The extreme flooding is due to the heavy erosion arising from the impact of permanent settlement on the higher grounds surrounding the national park. The flooding would drain into Lake Amboseli were it not for the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Road blocking the natural drainage channels.
The extreme flooding, damage to the roads and disruption to tourism caused by the 2026 could have been avoided had KWS allocated funds to do the road works needed for the flash flood to drain into the natural drainage channels feeding Lake Amboseli. It is neither expensive nor a difficult job to breach the road works causing the flooding.
The remedial action would direct the flood waters along their natural drainage channels to the northern edge of the park and into Lake Amboseli. The restoration would create new swamps and provide water and grazing to the Maasai at the edge of the park rather than them having to drive livestock into the central viewing areas. The expanded swamps would also create more dry-season grazing for wildlife, and expand tourist circuits across the national park.
The chronic and persistent lack of funding KWS has allocated Amboseli has prevented the management from carrying out the plans outlined in the Amboseli National Park Management Plan 2020-2030. The roads, infrastructure and tourist facilities are severely degraded as a result, largely due to the extreme flooding. A full assessment of the damage, the cost of restoration and remediation action should be commissioned before Kajiado County assumes the management of the park, lest it be blamed for its degraded state.
First, I want to confirm my concerns expressed at the meeting of 13th February about the large influx of livestock into the Amboseli early this year, heightening the risks of extreme floods in the event of very heavy long rains. A count ACP commissioned in mid-January shows the cattle influx was over 140,000 animals, more than double the resident population. The degradation caused will increase the flood runoff considerably at a time the swamps have also been expanded by extra underground inflow from Kilimanjaro.
It was agreed at today’s meeting at Ol Tukai that KWS should proceed with the excavation works as soon as possible to ensure sufficient drainage capacity of flood waters before the long rains. More extensive works may be needed after the long rains when KWS is to BE allocate substantial funds for flood control in the new financial budget.
The short-term emergency plan estimated by KWS at 900,000/= will proceed as follows.
This report includes an additional note on the risks of further flooding if the drainage channels are not completed before the long rains of 2022.
Late 2021 and early 2022 have seen an enormous influx of cattle into the Amboseli area from Tanzania, Narok, the Rift, Namanga area and as far north as Simba due to drought conditions in these areas. The influx has furthered degraded the areas surrounding the park leaving it even more vulnerable to flooding than we experience in 2020 in the event of heavy long rains in the coming few months. This should add a note of urgency in moving ahead with flooding works before then to avoid the extreme damage to roads and visitation experienced in 2021.
The heavy rains in Kenya which began in September and continued through January caused extreme flooding in Amboseli National Park. By December the floods stretched from the Loitokitok to Namanga roads (see photos below) causing a closure of the airfield and viewing roads. Inbound air traffic was diverted to Tawi and Ol Doinyo Uas strips, resulting in transfer times to the lodges of up to three hours. The disruptions and tourist complaints carried in the social media led to cancellations and heavy revenue losses to the hotels and the Kenya Wildlife Service.
The lodges, led by Ol Tukai, called for a meeting in Amboseli on 18th January to see what could be done to open the airstrip, roads and solve the flooding problem. The meeting was chaired by the senior warden of Amboseli, Kenneth Nashu, and attended by KWS road engineers, Ol Tukai Serena and Ol Tukai lodge representatives, Amboseli Trust for Elephants and the Amboseli Conservation Program.
The warden noted that the flooding had grown worse in recent years, was causing extensive damage to the roads and threatened the future of tourism in the park. He asked the meeting to identify the source and cause of the flooding, restorative measures for the airfield and roads, and preventive measures to curb future floods. The lodge operators, raising their concerns about the disruptions to visitors and sharp drop in revenues, asked for emergency measures to restore the park.
Asked to give a background to the flooding, I made the following points and recommendations which I have supplemented with photos:
The central portion of Amboseli National Park showing the permanent swamps in dark green. The flood waters, shown in lighter green west of Ol Tukai, can be channeled into Lake Amboseli along the historical drainage lines stretching across the central plains into the lake.
The extensive flooding in March of 2026 caused the closure of the Amboseli airstrip. The flooding was the most extensive since the 2020, though not as severe. The 2020 floods shut down air traffic for weeks, inundated Ol Tukai Lodge and drowned tourist circuits. The damage caused heavy losses to tour operators and hoteliers and costs to KWS in road repairs. In response to the disruptions, Ol Tukai Lodge called an emergency meeting of KWS, hoteliers and conservation organizations to assess the damage. The Amboseli Conservation Programme was I was asked report on the cause of the flooding and remedial action.
The report below concluded that the ultimate cause of the extreme flooding is the growth of farms and permanent pastoral settlements around the national park. Regular seasonal flooding, starting in 1992, has created a permanent flamingo lake in the centre of the park. The more immediate cause of flooding is the Namanga and Sultan Hamud roads blocking flash flooding along the natural drainage channels into Lake Amboseli.
The report concluded a permanent solution to the flooding lay widening the drainage channels across the two roads to allow the storm water to flow into Lake Amboseli. In the short term, the report recommended widening the drainage channels under the Namanga Road and deepening the natural trough leading into Simek Swamp to lessen the flooding.
The hoteliers, led by Ol Tukai, raised 900,000/= for KWS to undertake the short-term drainage works. KWS had no funds of its own to fuel the excavator to dig the trench. The excavations did alleviate extreme flooding until the prolonged heavy rains of 2026. Then, a week of heavy rains, followed by a 100 mm storm, overwhelmed the capacity of the ditching. Had KWS widened the two roads blocking the natural flow of water into Lake Amboseli, the extreme floods would have been prevented.
The technical Committee appointed to prepare a vision and strategy for Kajiado County to manage Amboseli raised concerns over the flooding in its 2024 report. The report urged the drainage channels on the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads be widened to avoid the extreme flooding. No action was taken by KWS for lack of funds allocated to undertake the task.
The two earlier reports on the Amboseli flooding are attached as background to the following report.
H.E Governor Joseph Ole Lenku asked me to take stock of the March flooding and report back on preventative measures. I flew down to Amboseli on 24th of March to record the flooding from the air. The following photos give a visual presentation of the floods.
The flash flooding in March stretched across the central portion of Amboseli National Park from the airstrip to Ol Tukai. Lengthy sections of tourist circuits around Longinye Swamp and the airstrip were submerged. Most of the drowned roads lie well below the ground surface due to continuous grading without any replacement murram to build them up again. The airstrip was also submerged but was serviceable by the time I flew down on 24th March. The roads to the airstrip were, however, under water, making it impossible for tourist vehicles to reach the airstrip.
The March flooding was extensive but far less so than in 2020. The airstrip drained within ten days rather than the weeks under water in 2020 floods. The rapid drainage was due to large part to the temporary KWS ditching siphoning off much of the flood waters into Lake Kioko and on to Lake Amboseli.
The ultimate cause of the extreme flooding results from the heavy permanent settlement on the higher ground surrounding the Amboseli Basin and national park. The worst floods cascade down the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro south of Namalog and flow through Kalunyet into Longinye Swamp, as seen in the photo below.
The flood waters flowing into Longinye would naturally drain into the Lake Amboseli along a series of shallow troughs. The natural flow has been blocked by the elevated Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads damming the natural flow. The damming has widened Longinye Swamp nearly twice its former width. The widening has drowned tourist circuits around Longinye and flooded parts of Ol Tukai Lodge, as seen below.
Conclusions
The conclusions I draw from the March aerial survey are much the same as those I made in the earlier reports attached. The extreme flooding is due to the heavy erosion arising from the impact of permanent settlement on the higher grounds surrounding the national park. The flooding would drain into Lake Amboseli were it not for the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Road blocking the natural drainage channels.
The extreme flooding, damage to the roads and disruption to tourism caused by the 2026 could have been avoided had KWS allocated funds to do the road works needed for the flash flood to drain into the natural drainage channels feeding Lake Amboseli. It is neither expensive nor a difficult job to breach the road works causing the flooding.
The remedial action would direct the flood waters along their natural drainage channels to the northern edge of the park and into Lake Amboseli. The restoration would create new swamps and provide water and grazing to the Maasai at the edge of the park rather than them having to drive livestock into the central viewing areas. The expanded swamps would also create more dry-season grazing for wildlife, and expand tourist circuits across the national park.
The chronic and persistent lack of funding KWS has allocated Amboseli has prevented the management from carrying out the plans outlined in the Amboseli National Park Management Plan 2020-2030. The roads, infrastructure and tourist facilities are severely degraded as a result, largely due to the extreme flooding. A full assessment of the damage, the cost of restoration and remediation action should be commissioned before Kajiado County assumes the management of the park, lest it be blamed for its degraded state.
First, I want to confirm my concerns expressed at the meeting of 13th February about the large influx of livestock into the Amboseli early this year, heightening the risks of extreme floods in the event of very heavy long rains. A count ACP commissioned in mid-January shows the cattle influx was over 140,000 animals, more than double the resident population. The degradation caused will increase the flood runoff considerably at a time the swamps have also been expanded by extra underground inflow from Kilimanjaro.
It was agreed at today’s meeting at Ol Tukai that KWS should proceed with the excavation works as soon as possible to ensure sufficient drainage capacity of flood waters before the long rains. More extensive works may be needed after the long rains when KWS is to BE allocate substantial funds for flood control in the new financial budget.
The short-term emergency plan estimated by KWS at 900,000/= will proceed as follows.
This report includes an additional note on the risks of further flooding if the drainage channels are not completed before the long rains of 2022.
Late 2021 and early 2022 have seen an enormous influx of cattle into the Amboseli area from Tanzania, Narok, the Rift, Namanga area and as far north as Simba due to drought conditions in these areas. The influx has furthered degraded the areas surrounding the park leaving it even more vulnerable to flooding than we experience in 2020 in the event of heavy long rains in the coming few months. This should add a note of urgency in moving ahead with flooding works before then to avoid the extreme damage to roads and visitation experienced in 2021.
The heavy rains in Kenya which began in September and continued through January caused extreme flooding in Amboseli National Park. By December the floods stretched from the Loitokitok to Namanga roads (see photos below) causing a closure of the airfield and viewing roads. Inbound air traffic was diverted to Tawi and Ol Doinyo Uas strips, resulting in transfer times to the lodges of up to three hours. The disruptions and tourist complaints carried in the social media led to cancellations and heavy revenue losses to the hotels and the Kenya Wildlife Service.
The lodges, led by Ol Tukai, called for a meeting in Amboseli on 18th January to see what could be done to open the airstrip, roads and solve the flooding problem. The meeting was chaired by the senior warden of Amboseli, Kenneth Nashu, and attended by KWS road engineers, Ol Tukai Serena and Ol Tukai lodge representatives, Amboseli Trust for Elephants and the Amboseli Conservation Program.
The warden noted that the flooding had grown worse in recent years, was causing extensive damage to the roads and threatened the future of tourism in the park. He asked the meeting to identify the source and cause of the flooding, restorative measures for the airfield and roads, and preventive measures to curb future floods. The lodge operators, raising their concerns about the disruptions to visitors and sharp drop in revenues, asked for emergency measures to restore the park.
Asked to give a background to the flooding, I made the following points and recommendations which I have supplemented with photos:
The central portion of Amboseli National Park showing the permanent swamps in dark green. The flood waters, shown in lighter green west of Ol Tukai, can be channeled into Lake Amboseli along the historical drainage lines stretching across the central plains into the lake.
The extensive flooding in March of 2026 caused the closure of the Amboseli airstrip. The flooding was the most extensive since the 2020, though not as severe. The 2020 floods shut down air traffic for weeks, inundated Ol Tukai Lodge and drowned tourist circuits. The damage caused heavy losses to tour operators and hoteliers and costs to KWS in road repairs. In response to the disruptions, Ol Tukai Lodge called an emergency meeting of KWS, hoteliers and conservation organizations to assess the damage. The Amboseli Conservation Programme was I was asked report on the cause of the flooding and remedial action.
The report below concluded that the ultimate cause of the extreme flooding is the growth of farms and permanent pastoral settlements around the national park. Regular seasonal flooding, starting in 1992, has created a permanent flamingo lake in the centre of the park. The more immediate cause of flooding is the Namanga and Sultan Hamud roads blocking flash flooding along the natural drainage channels into Lake Amboseli.
The report concluded a permanent solution to the flooding lay widening the drainage channels across the two roads to allow the storm water to flow into Lake Amboseli. In the short term, the report recommended widening the drainage channels under the Namanga Road and deepening the natural trough leading into Simek Swamp to lessen the flooding.
The hoteliers, led by Ol Tukai, raised 900,000/= for KWS to undertake the short-term drainage works. KWS had no funds of its own to fuel the excavator to dig the trench. The excavations did alleviate extreme flooding until the prolonged heavy rains of 2026. Then, a week of heavy rains, followed by a 100 mm storm, overwhelmed the capacity of the ditching. Had KWS widened the two roads blocking the natural flow of water into Lake Amboseli, the extreme floods would have been prevented.
The technical Committee appointed to prepare a vision and strategy for Kajiado County to manage Amboseli raised concerns over the flooding in its 2024 report. The report urged the drainage channels on the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads be widened to avoid the extreme flooding. No action was taken by KWS for lack of funds allocated to undertake the task.
The two earlier reports on the Amboseli flooding are attached as background to the following report.
H.E Governor Joseph Ole Lenku asked me to take stock of the March flooding and report back on preventative measures. I flew down to Amboseli on 24th of March to record the flooding from the air. The following photos give a visual presentation of the floods.
The flash flooding in March stretched across the central portion of Amboseli National Park from the airstrip to Ol Tukai. Lengthy sections of tourist circuits around Longinye Swamp and the airstrip were submerged. Most of the drowned roads lie well below the ground surface due to continuous grading without any replacement murram to build them up again. The airstrip was also submerged but was serviceable by the time I flew down on 24th March. The roads to the airstrip were, however, under water, making it impossible for tourist vehicles to reach the airstrip.
The March flooding was extensive but far less so than in 2020. The airstrip drained within ten days rather than the weeks under water in 2020 floods. The rapid drainage was due to large part to the temporary KWS ditching siphoning off much of the flood waters into Lake Kioko and on to Lake Amboseli.
The ultimate cause of the extreme flooding results from the heavy permanent settlement on the higher ground surrounding the Amboseli Basin and national park. The worst floods cascade down the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro south of Namalog and flow through Kalunyet into Longinye Swamp, as seen in the photo below.
The flood waters flowing into Longinye would naturally drain into the Lake Amboseli along a series of shallow troughs. The natural flow has been blocked by the elevated Sultan Hamud and Namanga Roads damming the natural flow. The damming has widened Longinye Swamp nearly twice its former width. The widening has drowned tourist circuits around Longinye and flooded parts of Ol Tukai Lodge, as seen below.
Conclusions
The conclusions I draw from the March aerial survey are much the same as those I made in the earlier reports attached. The extreme flooding is due to the heavy erosion arising from the impact of permanent settlement on the higher grounds surrounding the national park. The flooding would drain into Lake Amboseli were it not for the Sultan Hamud and Namanga Road blocking the natural drainage channels.
The extreme flooding, damage to the roads and disruption to tourism caused by the 2026 could have been avoided had KWS allocated funds to do the road works needed for the flash flood to drain into the natural drainage channels feeding Lake Amboseli. It is neither expensive nor a difficult job to breach the road works causing the flooding.
The remedial action would direct the flood waters along their natural drainage channels to the northern edge of the park and into Lake Amboseli. The restoration would create new swamps and provide water and grazing to the Maasai at the edge of the park rather than them having to drive livestock into the central viewing areas. The expanded swamps would also create more dry-season grazing for wildlife, and expand tourist circuits across the national park.
The chronic and persistent lack of funding KWS has allocated Amboseli has prevented the management from carrying out the plans outlined in the Amboseli National Park Management Plan 2020-2030. The roads, infrastructure and tourist facilities are severely degraded as a result, largely due to the extreme flooding. A full assessment of the damage, the cost of restoration and remediation action should be commissioned before Kajiado County assumes the management of the park, lest it be blamed for its degraded state.
First, I want to confirm my concerns expressed at the meeting of 13th February about the large influx of livestock into the Amboseli early this year, heightening the risks of extreme floods in the event of very heavy long rains. A count ACP commissioned in mid-January shows the cattle influx was over 140,000 animals, more than double the resident population. The degradation caused will increase the flood runoff considerably at a time the swamps have also been expanded by extra underground inflow from Kilimanjaro.
It was agreed at today’s meeting at Ol Tukai that KWS should proceed with the excavation works as soon as possible to ensure sufficient drainage capacity of flood waters before the long rains. More extensive works may be needed after the long rains when KWS is to BE allocate substantial funds for flood control in the new financial budget.
The short-term emergency plan estimated by KWS at 900,000/= will proceed as follows.
This report includes an additional note on the risks of further flooding if the drainage channels are not completed before the long rains of 2022.
Late 2021 and early 2022 have seen an enormous influx of cattle into the Amboseli area from Tanzania, Narok, the Rift, Namanga area and as far north as Simba due to drought conditions in these areas. The influx has furthered degraded the areas surrounding the park leaving it even more vulnerable to flooding than we experience in 2020 in the event of heavy long rains in the coming few months. This should add a note of urgency in moving ahead with flooding works before then to avoid the extreme damage to roads and visitation experienced in 2021.
The heavy rains in Kenya which began in September and continued through January caused extreme flooding in Amboseli National Park. By December the floods stretched from the Loitokitok to Namanga roads (see photos below) causing a closure of the airfield and viewing roads. Inbound air traffic was diverted to Tawi and Ol Doinyo Uas strips, resulting in transfer times to the lodges of up to three hours. The disruptions and tourist complaints carried in the social media led to cancellations and heavy revenue losses to the hotels and the Kenya Wildlife Service.
The lodges, led by Ol Tukai, called for a meeting in Amboseli on 18th January to see what could be done to open the airstrip, roads and solve the flooding problem. The meeting was chaired by the senior warden of Amboseli, Kenneth Nashu, and attended by KWS road engineers, Ol Tukai Serena and Ol Tukai lodge representatives, Amboseli Trust for Elephants and the Amboseli Conservation Program.
The warden noted that the flooding had grown worse in recent years, was causing extensive damage to the roads and threatened the future of tourism in the park. He asked the meeting to identify the source and cause of the flooding, restorative measures for the airfield and roads, and preventive measures to curb future floods. The lodge operators, raising their concerns about the disruptions to visitors and sharp drop in revenues, asked for emergency measures to restore the park.
Asked to give a background to the flooding, I made the following points and recommendations which I have supplemented with photos:
The central portion of Amboseli National Park showing the permanent swamps in dark green. The flood waters, shown in lighter green west of Ol Tukai, can be channeled into Lake Amboseli along the historical drainage lines stretching across the central plains into the lake.
Amboseli Conservation Program
P.O Box 15289-00509 or 62844-00200
Nairobi, Kenya.
Tel/Fax: +254 20 891360 / 891751
Email: acc@acc.or.ke
