City Hall plans to demolish over 200 'unsafe' buildings
A substandard four-storey building is demolished in Zimmerman on March 21, 2018. City Hall has earmarked more than 200 'unsafe' buildings for demolition. PHOTO | DENNIS ONSONGO | AFP
What you need to know:
- An audit on buildings shows that several buildings need urgent inspection.
- Only 884 structures are considered safe for habitation, and some 471 houses are unfit for occupancy and warrant critical inspection.
- Some 217 buildings need to be demolished immediately as they have been marked dangerous for habitation, while another 688 structures need to be urgently investigated.
City Hall has earmarked more than 200 buildings in Nairobi for demolition, terming them unsafe for occupation.
A further 688 structures will be inspected.
UNSAFE
Governor Mike Sonko said that an audit on buildings conducted by the Nairobi City Inspectorate Department revealed that several buildings need urgent inspection.
The audit was conducted between January and February.
The governor said that its preliminary investigations showed that only 884 structures are considered safe for habitation, and some 471 houses are unfit for occupancy and warrant critical inspection.
Some 217 buildings need to be demolished immediately as they have been marked dangerous for habitation, while another 688 structures need to be urgently investigated.
“These are some of the structures which were approved by rogue county officials. We will not allow human life to be put at risk by greedy individuals.
“My administration is carrying out the exercise of bringing down all illegal structures,” said Mr Sonko.
DEMOLISHED
On Wednesday, City Hall demolished substandard buildings in Zimmerman and Roysambu following the rise in collapse of buildings in Nairobi.
According to the Buildings Inspectorate at the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, several buildings in Nairobi are unsafe for occupation.
Statistics from the ministry indicate that close to 100 people have been killed in building debris, and more than 290 injured between 2017 and 2018.
Last week, a five-storey building under construction collapsed in Juja, Kiambu County.
Barely 48 hours after that incident, another building collapsed in Ruai Estate near the Eastern Bypass.
COLLAPSED
On March 15, Nairobi County Government officials and police warned residents, particularly in the informal settlements, to vacate houses marked for demolition to avoid disasters.
The rise in buildings collapsing has been blamed on the ongoing heavy rains.
On March 10, a building collapsed in Kariobangi.
All residents who lived in the four-storey building were evacuated before the collapse and no casualties were reported.
In January this year, two people died when a building they were demolishing at Stage Mpya in Pipeline Estate collapsed.
Seven other people were injured.
