Story of a Flood

As part of the HyCRISTAL Project, the team spent time with some community groups in Kisumu and Kampala talking about their experiences of flooding in the urban areas where they live.  We talked about what happened before, during and after a flood, and how high the waters came and where actually got flooded.  Initially this was to inform our flood modelling, and check the accuracy of our simulations, but listening to their stories, we wanted to do something with the stories they were telling about their real, lived experience of these events.

Working with Clearhead Media, we developed a script and animation to help share the experiences we heard about.   The aim is to inform viewers about the reality of what flooding is like for people who live in affected cities in East Africa, and while it may not be 100% accurate for everyone in these places, there should be significant relatable elements for those experiencing regular seasonal flooding in Kisumu and Kampala.  This educational, evidence based account, will help give a richer picture of what is going on and inform the development of future projects.

We hope to develop future video material taking more of a forward looking stance, and spending more time on where we could go from here.

Our thanks go to all who participated in our early project workshops as we explored what the problems were around flooding, sanitation and health in Kisumu and Kampala, and specifically our partners at Practical Action and Kisumu Urban Apostolate Programme (KUAP) in Kisumu, without whom this would not have been possible to create.