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Tourists and staff are being evacuated from Kenya’s popular Maasai Mara game reserve after floods left parts of it submerged.<\/p>\n
More than 10 lodges and camps have been flooded after the nearby Talek River burst its banks on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
There are also fears that some animals might have been swept away by the raging floods.<\/p>\n
The area’s police chief, Kipkoech Lotiatia, told the BBC the reserve was badly damaged.<\/p>\n
“The water has subsided but some lodges and camps are still under water,” Mr Lotiatia said.<\/p>\n
It is unclear how many people are trapped in the reserve, but about 36 have been rescued so far by air and another 25 by a boat rescue team, the Kenya Red Cross said.<\/p>\n
“In some camps, tents have been swept away, and the Mara bridge, linking the Mara Triangle and the Greater Mara, has been washed away,” the aid agency added.<\/p>\n
Many foreign and local tourists visit the reserve to see its wildlife, including lions, leopards and cheetahs.<\/p>\n
Mr Lotiatia earlier told journalists that rescue teams were using two emergency helicopters to evacuate the tourists and workers.<\/p>\n
The Masai Mara management did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment.<\/p>\n
The Talek river burst its banks on Tuesday afternoon following heavy rains upstream.<\/p>\n
The situation has been made worse by waters flowing from the Mara river, near the Serengeti-Tanzania border, following days of rainfall in the area.<\/p>\n
“After several days of continuous rainfall, our rivers have swollen, impacting several camps and areas in the Maasai Mara National Reserve,” the local Narok county government said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Roads and bridges have also been submerged by the raging waters, affecting local communities.<\/p>\n
The Talek gate, one of the main routes out of the game reserve, is said to be heavily flooded.<\/p>\n
President William Ruto has ordered Kenyans living in areas at risk of flooding or landslides to evacuate.<\/p>\n
The rainy season has been devastating this year, and about 180 people have been killed and 90 are missing in weeks of flooding.<\/p>\n
More about the floods in Kenya:<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/div>\n