Nairobi Building Collapse: Two Pulled Alive from Rubble as Manhunt Launched for Owner

Two people have been pulled alive from the rubble of a building that collapsed in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, on Friday, as rescue teams continue searching for five people still missing.

Police said on Saturday that a manhunt had been launched for the building's owner and the contractor responsible for the site.

Dramatic footage shows the bottom floor of the block thought to have been 16 or 18 storeys giving way before the rest of the building crumples, sending a plume of dust into the surrounding streets.

Dozens of builders had been working on the upper floors when it collapsed, but managed to emerge largely unscathed. Those missing were thought to have been in shops at the base of the building.

The block was under construction when it came down on Friday afternoon, with footage showing scaffolding still wrapped around the outside. Officials said 11 shops had already opened on the bottom floors.

Interior ministry official Kipchumba Murkomen said 66 of the 67 construction workers in the building at the time had escaped unharmed, while the other suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. On Friday, he said seven people had been reported missing and rescue teams had made contact with some of those trapped beneath the rubble. The two survivors rescued on Saturday have been taken to hospital, police said.

Images from the scene in Nairobi's Eastleigh area show concrete floors piled on top of one another as rescue workers saw through metal to reach those believed to be trapped underneath.

The incident has raised fresh concerns about building regulations in Kenya. The National Construction Authority said it had identified the company behind the development, as well as the architect and structural engineer, but did not say whether the site had been inspected before Friday.

The National Police Service said it had launched an investigation to establish the cause of the collapse and determine whether anyone was criminally liable, warning that anyone found responsible for negligence or violating building regulations would “face the full force of the law.”

Nairobi Governor Sakaja Johnson told local media that the building's owners did not have the required paperwork for it to be occupied. He urged the national government to give local authorities greater powers to penalise “developers who disregard approved building plans and safety standards.”

Building collapses are not uncommon in Nairobi, with poor construction or improper planning often cited as contributing factors.