Six people were rescued on Monday, after a storey building collapsed at Corner Mbuta Estate in Manyatta, Kisumu County.
The building that housed seventeen families caved in early morning on Tuesday in what is suspected to be as a result of poor workmanship.
The County Police Commander (CPC), Benson Maweu confirming the incident, cited use of substandard construction materials and poor workmanship as possible reasons for the collapse.
Maweu asked residents to maintain calm as investigations commence to unravel what exactly might have led to the collapse of the building, which allegedly belongs to a senior traffic officer.
The CPC cautioned investors to adhere to construction standard as underlined by the department of planning.
The Kisumu City Manager, Doris Ombara visited the scene of the indent and pledged to crackdown on wayward developers found flouting construction safety regulations.
“We are very much aware of the biting shortage for affordable housing in the region but we must also understand that there is no shortcut in as afar as complying with construction standards is concerned,” she stated.
The Manager noted that Kisumu was among the counties that have signed a memorandum of understanding to partner with the national government in constructing 2,000 new affordable housing units under the Big Four Agenda, a move intended to bridge the gaping housing deficit.
In the meantime, experts estimate that the Lakeside City requires a minimum of 25, 000 new units per year in order to meet the growing housing demand for the over 1 million city dwellers.
Ombara vowed to follow up with the investigations on the incident and ensure that those found culpable of negligence are brought to book.
By Odeke Brian
