Our family is still doing ok here in Nairobi. Things are tense, and we are mostly staying home. Kevin ventured out today to top off our Speed the Light vehicle with diesel, and to pick up a few small groceries (from what is left on the shelves). The kids and Robin have not left our compound for several days now.
Many people are truly suffering in this city as riots and protests continue. We just heard that a Kenya Assemblies of God church was burned, with at least 20 people killed. Some people who are Kikuyu (the current President's tribe) were hiding in the church, fearing for their lives, and some young people, angry with that tribe because of the allegations of vote rigging, came and set the church on fire. The Kenyan Assemblies of God pastor is seriously wounded, but the local hospital is refusing to take any more patients since they are overloaded with gun-shot victims. Our Kenya Assemblies of God Superintendent is trying to find a way to fly the pastor to Nairobi where quality hospitals can tend to his medical needs.
Many grocery stores are depleted of their stock. Some stores are being looted, and others are just running out of supplies, since there are no deliveries being made. Many of the poor in the city do not have extra food, and there is none to be bought in their area. Pray for the innocent poor, suffering because of this!! We heard recently that Nairobi has the highest number of slums in the world, with at least 150 slums within the city limits. One slum alone has over 1 million inhabitants. Our mission has many local pastors and outreaches in the slums. Also, scores of parents of Kevin's Rosslyn Academy students work in the slums, trying to make a difference.
We do not hear as much gunfire in our area now as we heard within the first 24 hours after they announced the president was re-elected, so perhaps our area is calming down a bit. However, the downtown area is still quite volatile, especially as the opposing party leader (Raila Odinga) is asking for a million man march downtown on Thursday. Police will probably ban anyone from attending, but it still could get very dangerous.
Below are a few links to some current stories (including the story of the KAG church that was set on fire), as well as a link to a Q&A article that answers some basic questions about Kenya and how things got to this point.
We appreciate your prayers, not only for our family and our colleagues, but also for the poor and innocent people suffering during this time.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L01651287.htm
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSL277107920080101
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7165962.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7166590.stm
