Death toll rises to 5 in Nairobi collapsed building tragedy after 3 bodies are found

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Three bodies were retrieved from the debris of a collapsed building in Kenya’s capital on Thursday morning, two weeks after the deadly collapse, bringing the confirmed death toll to five as police said recovery operations were nearing completion.

Sixteen people are still believed to be missing since the building collapsed on Oct. 23.

Four people were rescued alive from the 18-story building, which collapsed along a busy commercial street in Nairobi, while its upper floors were still under construction. The ground and basement floors had been rented out to businesses, including an electronics shop, a grocery store, a textile shop and a butchery.

Nairobi County Governor Johnson Sakaja said the building had not been approved for construction and that the renting out of the completed floors was also illegal.

He blamed weak enforcement of construction regulations and minimal penalties for developers’ blatant disregard for building laws in the capital.

The developer has since been questioned by investigators, but no arrests have been made. The building was owned by two partners under a joint venture agreement.

Kenya has recorded 98 building collapses over the past five years, resulting in 104 deaths and 80 injuries, according to government data.

The country is currently co-hosting the International Conference on Strengthening Search and Rescue Services in Africa, alongside the United Nations and the Russian government. Participants are discussing innovations that could save lives during building collapses, with the aim of strengthening emergency response capacity across African countries.

Three days after the Nairobi building collapsed, the government partnered with a Chinese company that introduced thermal imaging technology at the site. The technology detected two people trapped beneath the rubble.