Kisumu Rice Farmers Appeal for Help After Hailstorm Destroys 80% of Crop

Rice farmers in the Kochieng Irrigation Scheme, Kadibo Sub County, are appealing for urgent assistance from the Kisumu County government and national disaster agencies after a severe hailstorm destroyed most of their crop.

According to a preliminary assessment by the County Disaster Management team, the storm affected about 148 acres of rice farms, wiping out nearly 80 percent of the crop, which was at the ripening and maturing stage.

The loss, estimated at 4,448 bags of rice, has left more than 150 farming families in Miguye village struggling to recover.

“This disaster struck just when farmers were expecting to harvest. While crops at the milk and dough stages were less affected physically, they suffered significant stress from the extreme weather,” said the scheme’s secretary, Joshua Munga.

Farmers in the area say the destruction has wiped out their only source of livelihood.

“The storm was a natural disaster beyond our control, and we urgently need help to get back to farming,” said Lucas Ochieng Akumu, one of the affected farmers.

He noted that rice farming is an expensive undertaking.

“Tilling one acre costs about Sh4,600, and it takes roughly Sh60,000 to raise the crop to maturity. The losses we have incurred are devastating,” he said.

Akumu explained that most households in Kochieng depend on rice farming as their main income source.

“We plant rice to educate our children and sustain our families. We are pleading with the national and county governments, as well as the Ministry of Agriculture, to help us recover,” he added.

Many farmers, he said, had taken loans or sold livestock to finance their farms, making the impact even harder to bear.

“When such disasters strike at harvest time, it’s heartbreaking. Some farmers might not recover enough to plant again next season,” Akumu said.

The Kochieng Irrigation Scheme currently covers about 1,500 acres under rice and other horticultural crops, with potential for expansion to 2,500 acres.

Farmers fear that without immediate intervention, the storm’s impact could reverse years of effort to improve food security and livelihoods in the area.