Four feared trapped as Kenya capital building collapses

A multi-storey building under construction in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, collapsed and at least four people are believed to be trapped.

Rescuers were digging through the rubble on Friday.

The building was in Nairobi’s area known as South C, according to the Kenya Red Cross, which said in a statement that a multi-agency response team was “managing the situation” at the scene.

Four people were believed to be trapped, cabinet secretary for public service Geoffrey Ruku told reporters.

Safia Ali Aden, the sister of one of those trapped, told reporters at the scene that her brother made a phone call “while he was there.”

“We ask the government to be quick in rescuing my brother so that we can find him alive,” he said.

There is no comment yet from the authorities about the possible cause of the collapse.

Building collapses are common in Nairobi, where housing is in high demand and unscrupulous developers often bypass regulations or simply violate building codes.

After eight buildings collapsed in Kenya in 2015, killing 15 people, the presidency ordered buildings across the country to be inspected to see if they were up to code.

The National Construction Authority announced that 58 percent of buildings in Nairobi are unfit for habitation.