Over 100 die in Nairobi fire

11 Sep, 2011

Over 100 people perished in a fire in the densely-populated Lunga Lunga industrial area of Nairobi on 12 September.

Police believe that the fire started after a cigarette butt was dropped into a fuel-contaminated open sewer in the Sinai slum area located between the airport and the Central Business District (CBD).

It is thought that petrol from a depot belonging to the Kenya Pipeline Company had entered the drain and that residents were attempting to retrieve the fuel at the time the fire broke out.

More than 80 people were taken by ambulance to hospitals around the city, many of them burnt beyond recognition. Kenya Red Cross reported that students of a school inside the slum had all been burnt.

Local media sources estimate the deaths to number between 120 and 150. Authorities have yet to ascertain the total amount of fatalities.