Landslide Disaster Preparedness and Mitigation Measures: A Case of Kapkesevillage, Kokwet Location, Kipkelion West Constituency, Kipkelion District, Kenya

Authors

  • Bernard K. Rop
  • Seroni Anyona

Keywords:

landslide, land-use, mitigation measures, volcanic rocks, geo-hazards

Abstract

The Kapkese landslide disaster has recurred (December 2015) from the heavy El Nino rainstorms sweeping Kenya. The village is located in Kokwet Location, Kipkelion West Constituency, Kipkelion District, Kenya. This has again caused harmful geoenvironmental hazards to the villagers who have migrated to safer areas, far from their original homesteads. In May 2003, a mother and her three little daughters were killed when their hut was buried in a similar landslide. The existing landslide vulnerability occurrence ratings have been identified and documented using participatory approaches. The adoptive indigenous methods, which helped mitigation against the negative impacts, were useful while determining the slope steepness using Abney level and other inherent factors that triggered the landslide. The geological set up, settlement and climatic factors relating to landslides, revealed that the affected homesteads are on a steep slope of approximately 80%. The
underlying Tertiary volcanic rocks (basalts and nephenilites) on the steep escarpment where the landslide occurred, consists of loose
debris and unconsolidated thick black cotton soils. The slope has scattered vegetation cover due to extensive farming of mainly maize
and coffee plantations. The landslide disaster is a precursor to loss of lives, injuries and damage to property. Natural resources, including
water points, suffered siltation. Mitigation measures such as geo-hazard mapping and zoning, construction of support structures, encouraging agro-forestry on vulnerable steep hill slopes and hazardprone areas resulting from poor land use practices, have been
recommended.

Author Biographies

Bernard K. Rop

Department of Mining, Materials and Petroleum Engineering, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology (JKUAT)

Seroni Anyona

Department of Mining, Materials and Petroleum Engineering, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology (JKUAT)

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Published

04-04-2022