This archive report was first published on 8 May 2020.
On May 7, 2020, Kenya's Ministry of Health confirmed 607 COVID-19 infections and 29 deaths, with dozens of cases reported in Nairobi's Eastleigh area and Mombasa's Old Town.
Residents of Eastleigh, including Burhan Iman, were caught off guard when the government announced a 15-day lockdown without prior notice. Iman, who works in Eastleigh but lives in Nairobi's South C estate, was shopping for his wedding when the area was cordoned off.
'We did not get prior notice, we were ambushed,' Iman said. 'I wish they could have given notice, tell them prior that they were going to put a lockdown in place so that people who are not from Eastleigh could get time to get out of Eastleigh.'
Kenyan Ministry of Health official Dr. Rashid Arman warned that those leaving the area are making the coronavirus problem worse. 'We have observed that arising from the directives, some people have decided to sneak out of these areas and to relocate to the neighboring estates,' he said. 'Let me caution that this move is counterproductive and dangerous.'
Similar scenes played out in Old Town Mombasa, where 59-year-old Mahmud Garwan woke up on May 7 to find his local supermarket closed due to travel restrictions. Garwan, who runs an insurance firm in Mombasa's city center, was unable to go to work due to the lockdown.
