This archive report was first published on 9 October 2019.
On the night of October 9, 2019, a fire broke out in Korogocho slums, Nairobi, destroying 15 houses and leaving 22 families homeless.
Some of those affected have been temporarily housed at St. Claire Primary School, while others have found shelter with relatives.
The fire, which started at around 9pm, took two hours to be brought under control by the fire brigade.
Residents pointed to a water shortage as a contributing factor to the delay in containing the fire, with some even using sewage to contain the blaze before the fire brigade arrived.
“As you can see our trenches are dry. We had to use sewage to contain the fire. If we had water we could have contained the fire fast enough,” said a resident.
One of the affected buildings housed scrap dealers who stored plastics and nylon, which fanned the fire.
Fortunately, there were no fatalities, with only three people sustaining minor injuries, according to the Red Cross team that responded to the tragedy.
Fire outbreaks are common in Korogocho slums, with a similar incident occurring on April 9, 2019, resulting in three deaths and 12 serious burn injuries.
