Kisii Building Collapse Leaves Five Dead, Four Injured

Five people have been confirmed dead and four others injured after a four-storey building under construction collapsed on Sunday morning in the Itierio area of Bonchari, Kisii County.

The tragic incident, which occurred along the busy roadside adjacent to a school, left dozens of residents in shock as rescue operations began. The building collapsed at 10:30 am, trapping several workers beneath the rubble.

According to Kisii County Deputy Governor Elijah Obebo, the county government received a distress call at 10:45 am and immediately deployed the Disaster Response Team, the Kenya Red Cross, and heavy machinery to the site.

Rescue operations were quickly launched, and emergency teams used excavators to dig through the wreckage, hoping to find survivors amid the broken concrete.

“This is a tragic loss of life that should never have happened,” said Mr. Obebo. “We will conduct a thorough inspection and ensure that those responsible are held to account.”

Robert Mogaka, one of the workers who left the site a few minutes before the incident, thanked God for saving his life.

“I had left to take water at my house. As I made my way back to the site, I saw the building crumble,” he said.

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A total of nine people – all men –believed to have been in the building were accounted for after a rescue operation that lasted for more than seven hours.

According to Deputy Governor Obebo, preliminary observations pointed to poor workmanship and possible breaches of construction standards.

“From the look of things, the structure was already unstable. We suspect the developers may not have followed the required building codes and safety procedures.”

“We are calling for a serious investigation, and if found culpable, those responsible must face the law,” he emphasised.

Meanwhile, the county government has issued a stern warning to all property developers, urging strict adherence to construction regulations and proper approval procedures before commencing any building works.

In November 2016, a 10-storey building under construction collapsed in Kisii town, killing six people. The ill-fated structure was the second to collapse in the area in less than six years.

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