The Tana River, the largest river in Kenya, is brown during the dry season, but red during the rains. It carries Kenya’s precious topsoil to the ocean, the red soil coming from further upstream and thickening the water considerably. Locals consider the water clean if it is brown.

The river provides the only source of water for the area. There are very few taps in Garsen, so most people collect water in big barrels, kick-rolling them home, or pushing them in a small handcart, which can carry up to ten barrels at a time. Unfortunately though, the river plays host to a number of hippos and crocodiles. Both animals tend to live under the water and only come up for air or food. They are also both incredibly dangerous. It was not unusual for a crocodile to remove someone’s leg (or worse) as they tried to collect water. Weeks before we arrived, one particularly large croc had been responsible for an attack a day. They finally managed to shoot it, but not before it had done an awful lot of harm.