A fire broke out at Kilifi County offices on Tuesday, November 12, bringing services to a standstill.
Speaking to the press, County Department for Water and Environment Committee Member (CECM) Omar Said noted that the authorities were in the office having a meeting before they heard screams of people alerting them of a fire breakout at the extension of the building.
''Fire has engulfed one of our offices of KIMAWASCO and at the time we were in having a meeting before we heard that there was a fire that had caught the building,'' Omar stated.
''We immediately alerted the fire department who responded within the shortest period, we want to thank them for that even though we still do not know what caused the fire,'' he added.
Eyewitnesses who spoke to the press blamed the county government noting that it had, in the past, ignored key safety procedures.
They further claimed that for some time, the county government resorted to burning garbage in the town center without taking into consideration its risks.
The residents further lamented that the county officials had previously harassed them for burning litter and questioned what changed after the outbreak was linked to improper garbage burning within the compound.
"At the start, if you were caught burning garbage anywhere near the town, enforcement officers would be on your case. Now we are wondering why a big department like this could do the same burning of tyres to a point that it causes a fire,'' one of the residents told the media.
The residents revealed that the fire might have possibly been a result of burning tyres, an allegation that the county was yet to respond to.
Videos seen by Kenyans.co.ke, showed a huge smoke engulfing the County Department of Water as residents rushed to the scene.
However, County Department for Water and Environment Committee Member (CECM) Omar Said revealed that the immediate cause of the fire had not been established, despite the allegations.
He added that the County had instead embarked on investigations into the incident while revealing that his office was almost razed down by the fire.
