The key facts

  • A multi-storey building under construction collapsed at around 13:40 on 9th Street in the Eastleigh area of Nairobi
  • The office of Governor Johnson Sakaja reported that only the ground floor was occupied; figures on the number of floors vary: from more than 10 to 12–18
  • Police used tear gas against looters who were hindering rescue efforts

Building collapse in Nairobi

On Friday, a multi-storey building that was still under construction collapsed in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. According to local media, there were casualties as a result of the incident, and looting began at the scene. The office of the Nairobi County governor confirmed the collapse and said in a statement that people may be trapped under the rubble. Videos circulating online captured the collapse and huge clouds of dust in the busy mixed commercial and residential area.

Details of the incident and rescue efforts

The Red Cross dispatched teams to the scene and said on social media that at around 13:40 a multi-storey building under construction collapsed on 9th Street in Eastleigh, Nairobi. Figures on the size of the unfinished building vary: Nairobi police chief Issa Mohamud said the building had more than 10 floors under construction, while other sources put it at between 12 and 18 floors. The office of Governor Johnson Sakaja reported that only the ground floor of the building was occupied. Local resident Abdi Aziz, 25, told the AFP agency that some shops as well as workers were in the basement, but because of Friday prayers many of them were at the mosque. The Reuters agency published a video showing people gathered at the scene while an excavator clears the rubble. The rescue operation was complicated: police tried to clear the area for emergency services to access, but had to use tear gas against people who had begun looting neighbouring shops. Eastleigh is a densely populated residential and market area, known as a centre of the Somali community.

Causes and context: building collapses in Kenya

The cause of the collapse remained unclear. Nairobi is experiencing an extremely rapid construction boom: high-rise buildings are rising across the city amid Kenya's population growth. Building collapses are a recurring problem in Nairobi. County officials responsible for issuing construction permits have been accused of insufficient checks on whether developers comply with building codes and safety requirements. According to a report by the Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis, from 2009 to 2019 there were 86 building collapses, which, by estimates, claimed around 200 lives. In addition, a separate inspection of almost 15,000 buildings by the National Construction Authority showed that 4.8% of buildings were very dangerous, while 72.3% were classified as unsafe.