This is the terrifying moment a seven-storey building collapses in Kenya, sending locals screaming from the scene.
Shocking footage has captured the catastrophic incident that saw the building in Kahawa West, Nairobi, reduced to rubble with a loud crash on Sunday morning.
As the massive building appeared to collapse in slow motion, panicked passersby were seen leaving the site as thick plumes of smoke rose into the air.
Following the collapse, a search and rescue mission is now underway as authorities fear there could be multiple casualties – one of which has already been recorded, Nairobi Governor Sakaja Johnson said.
Johnson said in an update: “The only casualty reported to date; a middle aged lady, she was outside the building, she fell and was injured when the building collapsed. She is currently receiving treatment and is stable.”
Terrifying images show the moment a seven-storey building collapsed in Kenya on Sunday
The tall building collapsed in a plume of smoke as locals fled the scene
Authorities believe there may have been multiple victims, one of which has already been reported
The Kenya Red Cross said several families are likely trapped in the collapsed building
The Kenya Red Cross said several families were likely trapped in the collapsed building, according to local reporters.
However, it is not known how many people were inside at the time of the collapse.
Nairobi police boss Adamson Bungei said residents had been evacuated from the house.
‘We’re not sure if there were any people in there, but I do know there was an evacuation. They knew it was weak,” he said.
Nairobi County Executive Built Environment Patrick Mbogo has stated that residents living in adjacent buildings will also be evacuated as a precaution.
Dicken Muchena, 31, who witnessed the collapse, said: ‘The building had been identified as a threat to people early today.
A view from the site after an apartment building collapsed in the West Kahawa area of the Kenyan capital Nairobi on October 20
Police officers in Kenya give instructions to bystanders to evacuate the area next to the collapsed residential building
A Kenyan aid worker inspects the rubble during a search and rescue mission
Kenyan and foreign disaster response teams conducted a search and rescue operation with unconfirmed reports that several people were trapped under the rubble
Kenyan security forces took precautions in the wreckage of the building where search and rescue operations were taking place
“There were signs of collapse, so people started leaving.
‘I went looking for more information on the ground and then the house collapsed.
“I was shocked to see people who were near the building being buried.
“There was horror at the scene and there was confusion.”
The Nairobi City County Government has confirmed the collapse of a residential unit at Kahawa West plot number. 233, along Stationsweg.
Currently, all Nairobi County teams are fully engaged in disaster recovery and evacuating residents from surrounding buildings.