100 families homeless as fire guts houses in slum

More than 100 families were rendered homeless after a fierce fire gutted their houses in a Nairobi slum.

The huge fire reportedly started after a gas cylinder exploded in one of the houses at Nairobi's Paradise village within Sinai slums.

Nothing was salvaged from the iron-sheets and wooden structures that were destroyed in the fire that started at 12:30pm Sunday.

Also reduced to ashes was a community school and a number of shops.

Speaking to The Standard, Zablon Ombongi, the chairman of the area residents, said efforts to contain the inferno by firefighters from the Nairobi City County were hampered by lack of access roads to the site.

"We are lucky because the fire broke out on a Sunday as most people were out for church, otherwise it would have been a different story. No life was lost and nobody was hurt," said Mr Ombongi.

Most were one-room structures that are popular in the zone near Industrial Area where majority of the residents eke out a living from doing menial jobs.

For Stephen Kamaru, one of the residents whose house was razed down, it was a double tragedy in less than 10 years. He lost his property in the 2007/2008 Post-Election Violence (PEV) in a similar version, after his house was burnt down in Turbo, Uasin Gishu County.

"I lost everything in 2007 violence and came here to start all over afresh. Now I am back to square zero after all I had was consumed by fire," he said, as he rummaged through what remained of his former house.

Precious Kemunto, another victim, appealed to the Government and well-wishers to come to their aid as they have nowhere to go.

"The furniture I had, TV, Radio and all personal effects including my clothes and those of my two children have been reduced ashes. We need urgent help," said Ms Kemunto.

Paradise area is ironically about 400 metres from a scene where more than 100 people lost their lives on September 12, 2011, following a fire incident that started at an oil spill from the Kenya Pipeline Corporation.