Residents in two settlement schemes in the Kinangop area of Nyandarua County are counting losses after a hailstorm left a trail of destruction on Monday evening. Crops, including maize, peas, potatoes, and cabbages, were destroyed, and the corrugated iron-sheet roofs of several houses caved in under the weight of hailstones. Fruit trees and several other big-leafed tree species were not spared either, as their leaves were beaten off by the large hailstones that pounded the Mwinjoyo and Mukungi settlement schemes. “The rain came as a surprise, it had been sunny for most of the day, the hailstorm came at about 5:30 pm, lasted for about 30 minutes to 40 minutes leaving major damages,” Karimi Nguyo, a resident said. Nguyo added that electricity to the two areas was also cut after trees fell on power lines compelling the residents to spend the night in the dark.
