By Magdalene Mukami
NAIROBI (AA) – Search-and-rescue teams from the Red Cross are battling to save an unknown number of people trapped in the rubble of a six-story building which collapsed amid severe flooding on Friday night in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.
So far, seven bodies have been pulled out of the rubble. More than 130 people have been rescued from the ruins and rushed to hospital while an unknown number are still trapped under the concrete slabs.
The building had 189 rooms.
Nairobi governor Evans Kidero, who described the flood as the worst that Kenya has witnessed this year, warned residents of even worse to come in the coming days.
“I am deeply saddened by the scenes, pictures and videos of the aftermath of yesterday’s heavy rains,” Kidero said in comments reported by the Kenya Today news platform.
Kidero said that the steady rain which has been pounding the city for the last three days reached an all-time high of 80mm against an expected normal rainfall of 12mm.
“The city is likely to continue receiving more-than-average rainfall. The city will be subjected to increased incidents of flooding on the roads and destruction of properties,” the governor warned.
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has visited the site where the building collapsed and comforted those who had lost loved ones.
The Red Cross says that more than 1,000 households have been affected by the floods.
On Friday evening, four people were also crushed to death by a collapsing perimeter wall near the Department of Defense headquarters in the Kenyan capital.
