The County Government of Kirinyaga has swiftly evacuated 20 families from a housing structure in Kutus Town, Kirinyaga County following concerns over its structural integrity, with fears looming of a possible collapse.
County Executive Committee Member for Lands, Physical Planning, and Urban Development, Samuel Kanjobe said that the evacuation was prompted by reports from concerned citizens regarding cracks in the building.
"We received reports from concerned members of the public about cracks in the building, prompting us to take immediate action to ensure the safety of residents," he said.
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According to Kanjobe, initial assessments suggested that an adjacent three-story building under construction may have contributed to the structural issues observed in the older building, constructed in the late 1970s.
"We issued a stoppage notice to the owner of the adjacent property, halting construction until structural concerns were addressed," Kanjobe emphasized.
However, the situation escalated when additional fault lines appeared, and parts of the building's canopy began to deteriorate.
"This prompted an emergency evacuation on Tuesday evening to prevent any potential harm to residents," Kanjobe noted.
He stressed the importance of conducting thorough audits on both structures to determine the underlying cause of the cracks and ensure comprehensive safety measures.
"Our priority is to protect the lives and well-being of our residents," he affirmed.
Uthiru building collapse
The incident in Kutus Town, Kirinyaga comes hours after a five-storey building collapsed in Uthiru, Nairobi County on Tuesday night May 7, 2024.
"A five-story building has collapsed in Nairobi's Mountain View Ward, Westlands Sub County, along Naivasha Road, near the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). Nairobi City County emergency response team was swiftly deployed to the scene and continued to assist in evacuating residents to safety. As of 10:00 pm, all the families except four persons have been accounted for," Nairobi Disaster Management Chief Officer Bramwell Simiyu stated.
Kenya Red Cross on Tuesday confirmed that all occupants had been safely located and attended to.
