Disaster
Sixty-eight students in Narok county have taken part in this year’s 3.8 Kilometer-Humanity Power Walk with an aim of raising awareness on disaster preparedness. The students marched from William Ole Ntimama stadium to Ilmashariani Primary school echoing slogans of the day ‘Together for one Another’, as they made their way through the busy highway.
The annual event organized by Kenya Red Cross Society reflected on the need to prioritize rights and protection of adolescents and persons with disability; as well as promoting resilience and recovery after disaster.
Celestine Ogutu, a project officer in charge of Community Epidemic and Pandemic preparedness program said Narok County being a home for a variety of wild animals could be at risk of diseases like rabies and anthrax that are spread by the wild animals.
She said their aim is to sensitize the community on the preparedness and prevention of such epidemics so as to improve both human and livestock health. Benedictor Omondi from Red Cross society said the walk aims at sensitizing the pastoralists community on the need to vaccinate their livestock in a bid to curb diseases.
The students were also taken through menstrual health hygiene, how to deal with fire breakdown, floods among other disaster outbreaks. The programme was launched in 2018 with an aim to boost community epidemic and pandemic preparedness in the county. Among the schools that participated were Ilmashariani Primary School, St Peter’s Primary, Masikonde primary and Harmony Primary School.