Two children perished on Monday night after a fierce fire razed down their house within Majengo slums in Nanyuki town.
The fire whose cause is yet to be established occurred at around 9.00 pm in Kisumu Ndogo area and quickly spread to several houses within the informal settlement leaving behind a trail of destruction with most families spending the remainder of the night in the cold.
The two children who perished in the inferno included a girl aged four and her one and a half years old younger brother.
Residents who tried to put out the fire blamed the local fire brigade for the slow response in tackling the emergency saying if they had responded on time the lives of the two children and property would have been saved.
Isaac Oduor said local fire brigade department delayed in putting off the fire despite being alerted on time.
“Firefighters came late despite us alerting them early when the fire was first spotted and when they arrived they just stood still watching us as we battled the fire. We felt like chasing them away,” said Oduor.
“We did not manage to salvage anything. But we all blame it on the firefighters. The government should prioritize helping its people but not channeling our resources in unnecessary things,” he added.
A resident, Mary Muthoni said the fire spread quickly adding, “We could not help much and we felt bitter as the bodies were being removed. Until this moment, we have not seen the mother of the two deceased children,” she said.
By Martin Munyi
