One of the owners of an illegal gas filling plant in Embakasi that exploded Thursday night and killed at least six and injuring more than 300 people surrendered to the police Monday.
Police said the businessman turned up at the police station accompanied by a lawyer and was grilled by detectives as the probe into the tragedy goes on.
The details and identity of the man who surrendered were not immediately available.
Police have been pursuing seven suspects in connection with the explosion, including Derick Kimathi, the proprietor of the illegal gas filling plant, Steve Kioko, Kimathi’s partner, the driver of the truck that is suspected to have caused the explosion whom they are yet to confirm whether he escaped or was among the casualties.
The police are also looking for three National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) officials who were suspended for allegedly issuing a license illegally to Kimathi’s company.
One of the deputy directors was on Sunday arrested in Nairobi
Kimathi had earlier told police through a lawyer that he is in the business of transporting LPG products and that last year he made applications to the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) to get a license to operate a gas filling plant in the area but the applications were rejected.
He also denied reports that the site where the incident occurred was an illegal gas plant stating that for years it had been a garage.
Police say the garage specialised in repairing only trucks transporting Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG).
The businessman argued that he shelved the idea after EPRA rejected his applications on grounds that the site was not viable due to its closeness to the public.
Residents say the place was an illegal gas filling plant which was preferred for its cheaper gas.
Following the incident, the government announced a raft of measures to ensure compliance in the sector.
They include undertaking a fresh risk assessment for all LPG plants with the view of closing all non-compliant sites, demolishing all illegal sites, an immediate rollout of a government LPG growth strategy and strengthening the LPG data verification framework, among other measures.
Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura said Sunday seven people are in critical condition at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) and Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH).
KUTRRH has attended to a total of 27 patients, with eight already discharged and 19 currently under care, including 10 males, six females, and three minors.
KNH got 67 patients from the incident, with six in critical condition, suffering from severe burns.
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