More bodies recovers from building collapse -Kenya

The death toll from a building which collapsed in Nairobi last week due to heavy rains rose to 26 on Wednesday after three more bodies were retrieved from the debris.

Paius Masai, National Disaster Management Unit Incident Commander said the three bodies were pulled out of the building on Tuesday night in the rescue operation which also saw nine rabbits rescued.

“Three more bodies were recovered last night.

“Nine rabbits were also rescued alive from the debris and one was found dead. So far, 136 people have been rescued alive, 26 confirmed dead and 93 others are still missing,” he said.
Masai said that rescue operation which kicked off last Friday was still continuing after the six-story residential building which had been earlier earmarked for demolition, collapsed in Nairobi’s low-income Huruma residential estate.

“We appeal to anyone who has a missing relative to be patient since the exercise is delicate due to balancing both safety of rescuers and victims.’’

Kenya Red Cross Society confirmed that families have also been displaced and approximately 200 households had been affected and were currently camping at a chief office in Kinyago village in Eastleigh.

It said that the residents confirmed that the building was built on a waterway, blocking the passage of water which could have weakened its structure and collapsed after heavy rains and flooding on Friday night.

KRCS said that unconfirmed reports indicated there was no construction plan and that the building had not been approved.

It said that residents said owners and developers of such structures regularly use court orders to block Nairobi County from pulling down structures earmarked for demolition.

The Red Cross said its collaboration with National Youth Service, and the military, which had deployed machinery to support the operation.

It said it had mobilised partner support to provide heavy machinery resources, and participating in search and rescue.

Red Cross said that three bodies were retrieved after a six months old baby girl was pulled out alive from the rubble, four days after the incident occurred.

“There were celebrations when ‘baby Favour’ whose real name is Dealeryn Saisi Wasike was found suckling her fingers in a basin wrapped in a blanket early Tuesday.

“The baby has since been reunited with her father, Ralson Saisi Wasike while the body of her mother was found at a morgue.

Home News News Baby rescued four days after Kenya building collapse

Kenyan rescuers pulled a seven-month-old baby alive from the rubble of a six-storey building on Tuesday, four days after the block collapsed during heavy rains killing at least 23 people.

Two brothers who own the building were remanded in police custody on Tuesday but not charged as rescue efforts continue with close to 100 still missing.

The baby girl’s father described the recovery of his daughter, Delarine Saisi, as a “miracle”.

“I thank God for all that he has done to get my daughter alive after all those days in the rubble,” said Ralsan Wasike, adding that he did not know the whereabouts of the girl’s mother.

“I pray she is alive,” he said.

The Kenya Red Cross said the baby girl was found at 4:00am (0100 GMT) “in a bucket wrapped in a blanket”. She was dehydrated but without visible physical injuries.

The Red Cross had initially said the baby was a year and a half old, but the father later said she was less than half that age.

Baby Delarine was rescued 80 hours after the building collapsed on Friday night during torrential rains that hit the Kenyan capital last week.

The building was home to around 150 families crammed into single rooms.

Police said the death toll from the tragedy rose to 23 on Tuesday after two more bodies were found.

Located in the poor, tightly-packed Huruma neighbourhood, the building had been slated for demolition after being declared structurally unsound.

But an evacuation order for the structure, which was built near a river just two years ago, was ignored.

Five people were remanded in custody for 21 days on Tuesday to allow prosecutors to gather evidence and file charges, including the two brothers who own the building and three construction officials.

Several buildings have collapsed in recent years in Nairobi and other Kenyan cities, where a property boom has seen buildings shoot up at speed, often with scant regard for building regulations.

The deaths in Huruma bring to at least 30 the number of people who have died in Nairobi since the weekend in accidents linked to floods caused by torrential rains.