1998 Nairobi terror blast confirmed US envoy’s fears over embassy security

Prudence Bushnell, then US Ambassador to Kenya, is escorted away from the scene of the 1998 bombing. [PHOTOS: FILE/STANDARD]

Nairobi, Kenya: Prudence Bushnell stood frozen in her dusty high heels and debris-covered green business suit, her face contorted in disbelief. She was in the control room, quickly established at the USAid building, trying to come to terms with what had just happened.

A few hours earlier, she had been in a meeting with then Cabinet Minister Joseph Kamotho at Cooperative House. Suddenly, there had been a small explosion, followed by a flash of brilliant light. A second massive explosion had blown the windows and shaken the building. Suddenly, the US embassy was engulfed in swirling smoke, screams of anguish and tongues of flame.