Dozens killed as dam bursts in flood-hit Kenya

At least 45 people died when a dam burst its banks near a town in Kenya's Rift Valley, police said on Monday, as torrential rains and floods battered the country. The disaster raises the total death toll over the March-May wet season in Kenya to more than 120 as heavier than usual rainfall pounds East Africa, compounded by the El Nino weather pattern.

Rescuers were digging through the debris, using hoes and in some cases just their bare hands in a desperate search for survivors. The Interior Minister said the government had directed security and intelligence officials to "inspect all public and private dams and water reservoirs in their jurisdictions within 24 hours and recommend cases for compulsory evacuation and temporary resettlement".