3 dead, 3 hospitalised after building collapses in Huruma

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Kenya Red Cross officials, through their twitter account, say four people have so far been rescued and rushed to hospital.

Three people have been confirmed dead after a five-storey building collapsed in Huruma early Sunday morning.

According to Mr Pius Masai, the deputy director National Disaster Management Unit (NDMU), one person was found dead in the debris while another died on the way to the hospital. Three others have been hospitalised.

Rescue team scales a ladder at the site of the Huruma building collapse in Ngei 2 near CDF Hall on June 3, 2018. One person has died and four others rushed to hospital. PHOTO | TWITTER | KENYA RED CROSS

Mr Masai said many of the tenants of the ill-fated building left when it developed cracks shortly before midnight on Saturday.

NYS servicemen at the site of the Huruma building collapse on June 3, 2018. Rescuers say accessing the site is difficult because of the narrow paths in the estate. PHOTO | BENSON MATHEKA | NATION MEDIA GROUP

But he said the number of building’s occupants has not been established.

Tenants in the nearby buildings have been evacuated after rescuers declared the area a dangerous zone.

"We have enough equipment and personnel. What is delaying is entrance to the scene," said Mr Masai.

The collapsed Huruma building was adjacent to a primary school. The death toll has risen to three after a body was pulled from the debris. PHOTO | JAMES KAHONGEY | NATION MEDIA GROUP

The collapsed building was adjacent to a primary school.

Rescue teams had to demolish several structures to access the site because it is in a densely populated area.

Already, the National Construction Authority has started inspecting nearby buildings and ejecting tenants from structures with cracks.

Mathare sub-County Deputy Commissioner Patrick Mwangi said the collapsed apartment had been marked for demolition but the tenants sneaked back in and had been staying there for months.