- A building of more than ten floors came down on Friday afternoon in one of Nairobi's busiest commercial districts
- Witnesses described screaming and chaos at the scene as the collapse occurred during Friday prayer hours
- Nairobi's governor has raised serious concerns about the regulatory failures that allowed the incident to happen
A multi-storey building under construction collapsed on Friday afternoon along 9th Street in the Eastleigh district of Nairobi, Kenya, sparking an immediate rescue operation as fears grew that several people had been trapped beneath the rubble.
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja confirmed that a 16-storey building had come down and said rescue teams were already on the ground, with efforts under way to pump oxygen underground to reach potential survivors.
Source: Twitter
Bramwell Simiyu, the county's Disaster Chief Officer, told the BBC that authorities were unable to confirm how many people were inside the 13-storey structure at the time of the collapse, adding that officials had received reports of illegal occupation on the lower floors before the building was officially commissioned.
Traders speak as 18-storey building collapses
Omar Ahmed, coordinator of the Eastleigh traders' committee, said the building had approximately twelve floors and was due to be opened formally in the near future. He said shops on the ground floor were already operating and members of the public were on the premises when the structure gave way. Ahmed described harrowing scenes in the immediate aftermath. "We fit hear one mother screaming and e dey recite di Islamic declaration of faith. One boy dey shout, say, 'My brother dey inside,'" he said.
A witness at the scene told the BBC the timing made the situation particularly severe, as the collapse occurred while people were heading out for Friday prayers, a typically busy period in the predominantly Muslim neighbourhood. "Na terrible incident, and everybody for di scene dey shock," the witness said.
Videos circulating on social media captured the moment the building fell. Anti-riot police subsequently deployed tear gas to disperse residents who had gathered and were blocking access roads leading to the site.
Kenya building collapse: What Nairobi governor says
Governor Sakaja used the incident to call on the national government to restore prosecutorial powers to county governors, arguing that such authority is essential to regulating construction standards in urban areas. He said contractors frequently dismiss qualified engineers from project sites and replace them with unqualified workers, and that the building's owner had not been granted approval to allow any occupation of the premises prior to completion of construction work.
County authorities confirmed that a full search and rescue operation had been launched, with efforts ongoing to mobilise heavy equipment at the scene. The full scale of casualties and structural damage remained unclear as rescue personnel continued working at the site.
See the video of the moment on X here:
Death, Injuries as Lagos records another building collapse
Legit.ng earlier reported that a building collapse on Akinola Street in the Fadeyi area of Lagos left one person dead and three others injured.
The incident happened on Friday morning along Ikorodu Road in Lagos State.
Emergency responders were called to the scene following the structural failure on Akinola Street.
Source: Legit.ng