It is unclear how many people are trapped in the reserve, but the Kenya Red Cross said more than 90 people have been rescued so far either by air or boat.

Tourists and staff have been evacuated by air from Kenya’s popular Maasai Mara National Game Reserve after more than a dozen hotels, lodges, and camps were flooded as heavy rains battered the country.

Tourist accommodation facilities were submerged after the nearby Talek River broke its banks on Tuesday afternoon.  There are also fears that some animals might have been swept away by the raging floods.

The Maasai Mara reserve, located in Kenya’s southwestern region, is a popular tourist destination because it features the annual wildebeest migration from the Serengeti in Tanzania. Many foreign and local tourists visit the reserve to see its wildlife, including lions, leopards, and cheetahs.

The area's police chief, Kipkoech Lotiatia, told the media that the reserve was badly damaged.

It is unclear how many people are trapped in the reserve, but the Kenya Red Cross said more than 90 people have been rescued so far either by air or boat. The local Narok county government said it deployed two helicopters to carry out evacuations in the expansive conservation area.

The Kenya Red Cross said most of the affected camps have been closed but the flooding has subsided.

“In some camps, tents have been swept away, and the Mara bridge, linking the Mara Triangle and the Greater Mara, has been washed away,” the aid agency said in a social media post earlier on Wednesday.

Local official Stephen Nakola told the AFP news agency about 100 tourists were stranded. He earlier told journalists that rescue teams were using two emergency helicopters to evacuate the tourists and workers.

The Talek river burst its banks following heavy rains upstream. The situation has been made worse by waters flowing from the Mara river, near the Serengeti-Tanzania border, following days of rainfall in the area.

“After several days of continuous rainfall, our rivers have swollen, impacting several camps and areas in the Maasai Mara National Reserve,” the Narok county government said in a statement.

Roads and bridges have also been submerged by the raging waters, affecting local communities.

The Talek gate, one of the main routes out of the game reserve, is said to be heavily flooded.

Three main roads in the capital Nairobi were temporarily closed on Wednesday due to flooding. The Kenya Red Cross rescued 11 people from a residential area – Kitengela – in the outskirts of Nairobi after their homes flooded overnight.

About 170 people have died across Kenya and 90 others have been missing since mid-March when the rainy season started, causing flooding, landslides, and destroying infrastructure. The Meteorological Department said more rain was expected this week.

On Monday, a river broke through a clogged tunnel in the Mai Mahiu area in western Kenya, sweeping away houses and damaging roads. It left 48 people dead and more than 80 others missing.

President William Ruto has ordered Kenyans living in areas at risk of flooding or landslides to evacuate or be moved forcefully as water levels in two hydroelectric dams have risen to a “historic high”.