Torrential rains lashed the Kenyan capital Nairobi late Friday, turning major streets into rivers and flooding thousands of homes and businesses.

Police said Saturday that at least 23 people had died in Nairobi but search and rescue operations were continuing amid widespread devastation.

Police spokesman Michael Muchiri told AFP on Monday that the toll was now 45 people drowned and 2,224 displaced but gave no further details.

AFP reporters saw on Saturday heavily damaged roads and infrastructure from Nairobi's vast slums to upmarket areas.

"The river banks broke as the rains continued and cars were swept off and water flowed into our shops destroying property for many people," Frederick Wasonga, who sells car accessories in the city centre, said.

Residents voiced anger at Nairobi governor Johnson Sakaja, who had vowed to deal with drainage and road infrastructure when he took office in 2022.

Multiple studies have tracked the increasing frequency of extreme wet and dry periods in east Africa in the last 20 years. Scientists have long warned that human-driven climate change is increasing the likelihood, length and severity of extreme weather events such as torrential downpours.