The five-storey residential building which was leaning in Kinoo has been brought down in a controlled demolition. The building was demolished following concerns by residents who noticed cracks and alerted the owner. The owner returned to the scene in the morning after the building collapsed, but left shortly after without speaking to anyone.
Masons at the site said they had noticed structural problems and informed the owner but no action was taken. They said they noticed a crack on one of the columns on Thursday, prompting them to stop construction.
George Omlati, a mason, said, “After doing plaster work, we told him that the building had slanted towards one side but he told us we are fundis and we should do our work. It was not until piping at the corner burst that he told us to halt constructionโ.
Breaking rules
Area MCA Samuel Kimani said the owner had been given notice, prohibiting him from adding another floor to the building. He was to stick to the original master plan he had presented to the county government. However, he went ahead and added more floors off plan.
The legislator said the owner should be held accountable for the disaster, noting that the county government approved the plan with fewer floors. Officials from the National Construction Authority said the structure will have to be brought down and announced investigations will commence immediately to establish if the law was followed during the construction.
Last week, nine people were killed in Hurlingham, Nairobi, when a crane they were handling crumbled from a 14-floor proposed student accommodation. Days later, three other construction workers were killed when a house they were constructing collapsed in Gachie area, Kiambu County. More than 10 others were injured in the incident.
