Recovery teams retrieve one body, three still missing after 8-storey building collapses in Kajiado

Recovery teams on Sunday, May 10 evening, retrieved the body of an unidentified man from the rubble of a collapsed building in Kajiado North Sub-County.

Police said the body was recovered at about 7.45 pm following an extensive excavation operation at the scene within the Oloolua area.

The scene was processed before the body was moved to Ngong Sub-County Mortuary, awaiting identification and postmortem examination.

Officials said recovery operations for more bodies were still ongoing at the site as rescue teams continued searching through the debris for possible additional victims.

At least people were trapped after an eight-storey building under construction partially collapsed at Ole Nairi area in Oloolua, Kajiado North, officials said.

The incident happened Saturday morning, officials from the National Disaster Management Unit said. Police said they had joined the rescue mission.

The emergency response team together with police said the situation was worsening and needed to be handled with extreme caution as efforts continue to rescue the four believed to be trapped beneath the rubble.

Authorities warned that the remaining section of the building was at risk of further collapse, posing a major challenge to the ongoing operation.

Heavy rains being experienced in the area are also hindering the rescue mission. Residents called for a faster response process in hopes of saving those still trapped.

Kenya Red Cross said a multi-agency response team was on site conducting recovery efforts, supported by an excavator.

This is the latest such incident amid efforts to address the menace in the construction sector.

Dozens of people are annually killed in such tragedies. There are calls for parties to follow rules for safety of workers in such situations.

Corruption and lack of supervision has been blamed for the deaths and injuries at the sites. Authorities also never take action on those involved in the construction of collapsed structures.