Residents of Kahawa West in Nairobi were left in disarray after a seven-storey building collapsed on Sunday morning.
The building, which housed businesses and residential units, collapsed into rubble in mere seconds, with videos obtained by Kenyans.co.ke capturing the final moments before the crumble.
In the videos, several children are seen trying to scamper for safety as the building toppled down into a huge cloud of dust as other residents watched in concern.
Confirming the incident, the Kenya Red Cross said in a statement that several people were trapped inside the rubble. "A multi-agency response team is currently responding to a building collapse in Kahawa West, Nairobi County, where people are feared trapped," the statement read.
Preliminary reports indicate area residents were informed about a possible collapse in advance by the County Planning Department. The building, which was marked for demolition, did not affect other adjacent structures.
The Nairobi County Government also released a statement on Sunday, confirming that rescue teams had been deployed to evacuate residents from neighbouring buildings.
"The Nairobi City County Government confirms the collapse of a housing unit in Kahawa West area plot no. 233, along Station Road, Kahawa West. Currently, all Nairobi County Teams are fully engaged in disaster recovery and evacuating occupants from adjacent buildings."
No casualties have been confirmed, although police speculate some people could be trapped under the rubble.
The latest incident came just months after a similar incident several kilometres away when a five-storey building collapsed in along Naivasha Road in Uthiru. The building, Epsom View Apartments, toppled to one side, leaving area residents in panic.
Kiambu County has particularly been on the spot from the National Construction Authority due to a series of questionable building structures.
In August 2024, a building in Ruiru was reduced to rubble, just days after 100 tenants were evacuated. The evacuation was prompted after the building developed cracks, sparking concern about its structural integrity.
Further back in May, a half-demolished building in Mathare left three people with critical injuries in an incident which occurred three weeks after a similar one in Nairobi’s Mountain View Ward.
