A building under construction in Mombasa County’s Majengo area collapsed on Monday, prompting a multi-agency response for search and rescue operations.
According to the Kenya Red Cross, two individuals have been rescued, while one person remains trapped in the rubble.
The Kenya Red Cross reported via X that the ongoing rescue mission involves multiple agencies, including the Kenya Police, Mombasa County Government, and the Kenya Red Cross. Construction workers who were on-site at the time of the collapse are also assisting in the search efforts.
“A multi-agency response team, including the Kenya Police, County Government of Mombasa and the Kenya Red Cross, is currently conducting search and rescue operations,” the Kenya Red Cross said on X.
Construction workers who were working on the building are also helping with rescue operations. The Mombasa County Lands and Housing Department is yet to comment on the incident, which took place more than a year after a four-storey building near the Mackinnon Market in Mombasa County collapsed on May 27, 2023, just one day after it was declared unsafe for occupation.
The incident comes only a few weeks after a multi-storey building collapsed in Kahawa West, Nairobi. The eight-storey structure in Kahawa West had been condemned for demolition.
Nairobi Deputy Governor James Muchiri issued a statement clarifying that experts had warned residents weeks before the collapse. The National Construction Authority (NCA) noted that the owner of the building had been given 14 days to provide a structural integrity report the previous week.
“The building had been condemned by the Multi-Sectoral Agency Consultative Committee on Wednesday, and an enforcement order was issued for immediate evacuation,” stated NCA Director Maurice Akech.
As rescue and recovery efforts continue, residents have criticized the county government for allowing the developer to risk people’s lives by attempting to reinforce the building’s visible cracks instead of evacuating the residents.
A witness reported that instead of vacating, the developer started renovations from the ground floor. The contractor and at least 10 workers were trying to fix the cracks when the building collapsed. One person was rescued and taken to the hospital by locals before the rescue team arrived.
