HAPPENING NOW: KDF, Anti-Terrorism and Bomb Squads Deployed as Eastleigh Rescue Intensifies

The rescue operation at the collapsed building in Eastleigh, Nairobi, intensified on Friday night after security officers, specialised rescue teams and sniffer dogs arrived to help locate people feared trapped beneath the rubble.

Officers from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), General Service Unit (GSU), regular police, Anti Terrorism Police Unit and Bomb Disposal Unit joined the operation along 9th Street.The National Youth Service, Kenya Red Cross, National Disaster Management Unit and Nairobi County emergency teams also participated in the rescue efforts.

Excavators were brought in to clear heavy debris, while sniffer dogs helped search for people who might still be alive beneath the collapsed structure.

The operation continued into the night as relatives waited anxiously for news about their missing loved ones.

The number of people trapped inside the building remained unconfirmed.

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja visited the scene with county officials and revealed that the building had received county approval but lacked an occupation certificate, which is required before a building can be occupied.

Sakaja urged architects, engineers and other construction professionals to report developers who dismiss them after obtaining project approvals.

He said this would help authorities identify possible safety violations and determine whether construction work was properly supervised.

Meanwhile, Nairobi Regional Police Commander Issa Mohamud confirmed that investigations had begun to establish the cause of the collapse and whether negligence was involved.

He warned that anyone found responsible could face criminal charges.Hopes of finding survivors increased after reports emerged that a woman had been heard crying beneath the rubble. A resident also reported communicating by phone with a relative believed to be trapped inside the building hours after the collapse.

The developments offered hope to families waiting for updates about their loved ones.

Police officers continued controlling crowds around the scene to allow rescue teams to work safely.

Authorities are expected to investigate whether construction regulations were followed and whether the building met the required safety standards.

Rescuers continued searching through the night as families prayed for the safe recovery of those still missing.

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