Casualties feared as multi-storey building collapses in Nairobi

A multi-storey building collapsed mid-construction in the Kenyan capital on Friday, the Red Cross said, with reports from local media of casualties and looting at the site.

Videos spreading online showed a dramatic crash and huge clouds of dust as the building -- thought to have been around 18 storeys high -- came down in a densely populated business and residential area of Eastleigh.

AFP journalists at the scene saw the building had been reduced to a pile of rubble as a small number of search and rescue teams arrived on the scene.

"There were some businesses in the basement, and workers who were busy building," said local resident Abdi Aziz, 25.

"But as it was (the Friday prayer), a lot of them were at the mosque. I think few people died because no one was living there," he told AFP.

Asked if he could see obvious flaws in the construction process, he said: "Everyone rushes to build in this neighbourhood."

Local media reported looting and possible casualties trapped beneath the rubble, with images showing large crowds gathered at the site immediately after the incident, which happened around lunchtime.

AFP journalists saw the building had been reduced to a pile of rubble as search and rescue teams arrived. By Tony Karumba (AFP)

AFP saw police use tear gas to disperse crowds gathering near the site.

Rescue operations had yet to begin when AFP arrived, with the site hemmed in by high-rise buildings, complicating efforts.

Nairobi is undergoing a rapid construction boom, with high-rise buildings appearing all over the city, particularly in Eastleigh which is known for its busy market areas and as a hub for the Somali community.

There have been many concerns over safety.

There were 86 building collapses between 2009 and 2019, killing an estimated 200 people, according to a report by the Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis.

An audit of almost 15,000 buildings by the National Building Inspectorate found that 4.8 percent were very dangerous, 72.3 percent were classified as unsafe, the report said.

The number of buildings completed annually in Nairobi has risen from 20,025 in 2022 to 25,090 last year, according to its statistics bureau, as east Africa's leading business hub sucks in people from rural areas and neighbouring countries.

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