Rescue Teams Intensify Search and Relief Efforts After Deadly Elgeyo Marakwet Landslide

By Mercy Chelangat

Rescue and recovery teams are working day and night, the Elgeyo Marakwet Woman Representative Caroline Ng’elechei said, as they continue to look for survivors and support families hit by a landslide which struck Chesongoch, Elgeyo Marakwet County, on November 2, 2025.
Addressing the press at Eldoret Airstrip on Tuesday, November 4, Ng’elechei said that national and county agencies, humanitarian organisations, as well as local communities, are coordinating relief and medical work after the disaster that has left 34 people dead and 17 others missing.
“At least the situation is being managed very well. We have very good teams on the ground, a committee that keeps us updated on what is happening,” she said. “We have government agencies, the Ministry of Health doing counselling and first aid for those injured.” Ng’elechei listed the involved entities such as Kenya Red Cross, Ministry of Health, the county government, local administration, Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) and the National Youth Service (NYS).  She said KDF aircraft and sniffer dogs have been deployed to help trace people still unaccounted for, while the local residents support the identification of victims.
“We have supplies of food and non-food items like bed sheets and sanitary towels, and we thank the well-wishers who have come to donate,” she said. “Some people admitted to hospitals like MTRH don’t have anywhere to go because their houses were carried away. That’s why we’re insisting they go to the camp so that we can provide for them while they are there.”
Ng’elechei said teams are ensuring access to clean drinking water since mud and debris from the landslide contaminated rivers and other local water sources. She also said that authorities have requested health teams to deliver tetanus vaccines, noting that many people, including those helping in search operations, have sustained minor bruises and cuts.
According to a government press release dated November 4, 2025, 34 bodies have been retrieved, 4 persons have been discharged, 13 are still recuperating at MTRH while 17 persons remain missing.

Reports indicated that the landslide was triggered by several days of heavy rainfall that loosened soil along the steep Kerio Valley slopes, causing a landslide which swept away homes and property, displacing dozens of families. Ng’elechei said teams will continue with the search and support for victims until those affected are accounted for. She also said the tetanus vaccine will help those in the rescue mission since they can get injured during the process.

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