One dead as house collapses

A building which its upper part collapsed at Kenol market on Saturday. One person died, and two others critically injured. [Photo: Boniface Gikandi

One person died and two others injured after a building under construction at Kenol Market collapsed on Saturday.

The workers were constructing an extension that had been halted by the physical planning department of the county government for violating the original design.

The three-storey building developed cracks prompting physical planners and structural engineers to stop it.

A witness Peter Kamau said he heard a crash only to come out of a nearby eatery and find the roof had collapsed.

"We could hear people crying inside the rubble after the building came down," he said.

He added: "The county government should stop ongoing construction of some buildings at Kenol Market until their safety is assured. Foundation of many upcoming buildings are weak after owners failed to comply with approved designs.”

Murang’a South sub-county administrator Michael Githii said the owner had been served with a notice to stop extending the building against the original design.