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188 people are dead in Kenya and another 155 are dead in Tanzania after months of heavy rain.
The Indian Ocean Dipole is a weather event that occasionally occurs in the area during this time of year, sparking heavy rains and unpredictable storms. Warmer ocean temperatures, all thanks to climate change, create stronger, more persistent storms that cause this severe flooding across eastern Africa.
Floods have inundated numerous cities in Kenya and Tanzania, leading to multiple mudslides and landslides as well-- one of which killed 50 people near the town of Mai Mahiu. Numerous tourists and staff became stranded at the popular destination of Maasai Mara National Reserve, which is known for its famous savannah tours and safaris, following life-threatening flooding in the area. In total, over 150,000 people have been displaced due to the disaster across the region.
Unfortunately, the situation is only expected to get worse. Cyclone Hidaya is on its way, carrying more rain and flooding with the addition of 70-85 mph winds. It is expected to make landfall tomorrow night near the city of Dar es Salaam, which is the largest city in Tanzania with over 2.7 million people. Since the ground is already heavily saturated due to the recent rains, flooding will be even more serious.
Ahead of this round of storms, the Kenyan government has ordered everyone living near any of 178 dams and reservoirs to evacuate due to the risk of water overflow. Shelters and food have been set up for the evacuees, which will be surging into safer areas.
Human rights groups all over the world are now pressuring the Kenyan government to stop this from happening again, as they ignored the lessons they could have learned from last year's rainy season that killed hundreds of people and displaced thousands of others. Money was set aside to be put toward citizen safety this year, but no one knows what happened to the funds and if they may have been misused. Kenyan citizens are also blaming the government of sending an extremely slow response and being unprepared despite being aware of the situation, and rescue teams have still not arrived in some towns to find bodies and survivors. The Kenyan government has promised to try harder to lessen the impact of climate change on our world to prevent severe weather events like this from happening again.
Fact of the Day (Reader's Digest): Peanuts actually aren't nuts, they're legumes. Technically, a nut is defined by being a hard-shelled dry fruit or seed with a separable rind or shell and interior kernel. Due to this, walnuts, almonds, cashews, and pistachios are actually classified as seeds instead of nuts.
Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting. (Buddha)
Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Forfend (verb) - Forfend is used in contexts relating to some kind of real or pretended danger or other unpleasantness. In humorous and ironic use, forfend typically appears in the phrase “heaven forfend,” and, like “heaven forbid,” expresses a usually ironic desire that something not happen or be done. In general use, if you forfend something unwanted or undesirable, you ward it off or prevent it; and if you forfend yourself from or against something, you protect or preserve yourself from it.
In a Sentence: Heaven forfend that people actually pick up dictionaries and read them!
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