A 'Green Army' is out to thwart El Nio flooding

Even without the interference of El Niño, Nairobi, Kenya is prone to flooding.Above: Motorists drive through heavy rains in the Kibera community on March 14.

Flooding that month took over 100 lives in the capital city.Donwilson Odhiambo/Getty Images hide caption Nairobi is a city of rivers, streams and almost six million people.For weeks, Kenya's bustling capital has braced for potentially catastrophic floods, as forecasters predict the strongest El Niño event on record this winter.

Globally, this year's Super El Niño will likely peak in November or December and continue into early 2027.But Nairobi isn't just watching and waiting.On a sunny October day near the city center, a team of workers in reflective vests shovels dirt and clears debris from the bank of a river.

It's unseasonably hot — and hot days usually suggest there's an unusually strong rainy season ahead."The best thing to do is to be prepared," says Alex Oyando, a 30-year-old worker."These drainage troughs are full of different things.

When we remove the dirt, the water can flow — and it prevents flooding."Nairobi frequently experiences catastrophic flash floods.More than 100 people died during rain-induced flash floods last March, and residents have pressured Kenya's government to do more to prevent these disasters in the future.As part of the preparations, Nairobi's county government has mobilized the "Green Army," a youth-employment program of more than 4,000 people.

While generally assigned to trash pickups and city greening projects, the workers have been out in full force to prepare for El Niño, clearing drainages and dismantling illegal structures like food stalls.These buildings are generally constructed by the community without government permits and are at an increased risk of collapsing during natural disasters.Earlier this month, Oyando and his colleagues w...