Several people were injured on Tuesday evening when a wall collapsed at Karatina market in Mathira Constituency, Nyeri County. Pulse Live Kenya and Kenyans.co.ke both reported that the wall stood next to Big Klub, in a busy part of the market. The cause of the collapse is not yet clear.
Pulse Live Kenya reported that people were trapped under the rubble and the market was thrown into chaos. Nyeri County's emergency department sent rescue teams to the site. Local witnesses helped pull victims from the debris. Kenyans.co.ke reported that trading in the market stopped during the rescue.
The injured were rushed to hospital. Neither outlet could say how many people were hurt or how serious their injuries were. Nearby traders also counted losses. Several businesses were damaged, and Pulse Live Kenya reported that goods and stalls were crushed by the falling wall.
As of Wednesday morning, the County Government of Nyeri had not issued a detailed statement on the cause of the collapse. Nor had it said whether other walls and buildings nearby could be dangerous. Pulse Live Kenya reported that traders and residents want to know whether building inspections are being properly enforced.
The collapse came weeks after a building disaster in Nairobi. On October 23, an 18-storey building under construction collapsed on 9th Street in Eastleigh. The rescue and recovery operation lasted 15 days. It involved the Kenya Red Cross, the Kenya Defence Forces, police and other emergency teams.
Rescuers pulled four people alive from the Eastleigh rubble and recovered eight bodies. Nairobi North County Commissioner Simon Osumba ended the search on November 6, after rescuers reached the basement. Three people reported missing are still unaccounted for. Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja said the building lacked the required construction approval. He also said occupying the finished lower floors while construction continued above them was illegal.
According to Pulse Live Kenya, urban planning experts and traders are now urging regulators to carry out safety audits of old commercial buildings and active construction sites.