NAIROBI, Kenya – Two people are feared trapped after a 16-storey building under construction collapsed early Tuesday morning along Muhoho Road in Nairobi’s South C estate, triggering a large-scale rescue operation by multiple agencies.
The Kenya Red Cross said the building came down at around 4:00am while workers were on site, leaving at least two construction workers trapped beneath the debris.
Emergency teams drawn from the National Disaster Management Unit (NDMU), Nairobi City County, the National Police Service, the Kenya Red Cross, the military and Kenya Power have cordoned off the area as search and rescue efforts continue.
“The area has been secured as multi-agency teams continue search and rescue operations,” the Kenya Red Cross said in a statement posted on X.
However, eyewitnesses at the scene expressed frustration over what they described as a delayed response, warning that the lack of specialised equipment in the early hours may have reduced the chances of rescuing survivors.
“Those who were working here are still inside. We don’t know if they are alive or have passed away,” said one witness. “From around 4:00am when the building collapsed, no responders arrived with the right equipment to remove the debris and save their lives.”
By the time additional help arrived, the witness said, hopes of saving those trapped had significantly diminished, calling on disaster response agencies to improve preparedness and response times.
Lang’ata Member of Parliament Felix Odiwuor, popularly known as Jalang’o, faulted what he described as systemic failures in regulating private developments, accusing some developers of bypassing safety standards through corruption and political connections.
“I have written more than 43 letters to the county government requesting information about buildings that appear suspicious or lack proper approvals, but there has been no response,” he said at the scene. “Any time questions are raised, they say they know the ‘who’s who’ in government.”
The MP noted that the collapsed structure was among developments previously flagged by the South C Residents’ Association, raising concerns about enforcement of building regulations in the area.
He further criticised the rapid pace at which some private high-rise projects are completed, sometimes in just over a year, compared to government housing projects that often take twice as long.
“This is alarming and points to a deeper systemic problem,” he said.
Odiwuor called for an immediate halt to all ongoing construction projects in South C to allow for fresh safety inspections by a multi-agency team.
“We are requesting that every construction site in South C stop operations so a new evaluation can be carried out by the National Construction Authority with county approval,” he said. “There must be multi-agency clearance before any work continues.”
Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause of the collapse or the exact number of workers who were at the site at the time. Rescue operations were still ongoing by mid-morning.
