Death toll rises to 5 in Kenya building collapse after 3 bodies recovered

Three bodies recovered from a collapsed building in Nairobi have raised the confirmed death toll to five, two weeks after the 18-storey structure fell on 23 October. Sixteen people remain believed missing, while four were rescued alive; police say recovery work is nearing completion.

The building’s upper floors were still under construction, and businesses occupied its ground and basement floors. The county governor said construction had not been approved and the rented premises were used illegally, citing weak enforcement and low penalties. The developer has been questioned, but no arrests have been made. Government data records 98 building collapses in Kenya over five years, causing 104 deaths and 80 injuries; thermal imaging at the Nairobi site detected two people beneath the rubble.