The demolition of the 11-storey building by explosives in Mombasa on Wednesday brought further unmitigated destruction of nearby buildings.
Footage obtained by Kenyans.co.ke showed nearby buildings with shattered windows, punctured walls, and destroyed floors brought about by the explosion.
Unconfirmed reports point toward the damage having destroyed commercial and residential buildings.
The demolition, which occurred Wednesday, April 9, was necessitated by the building’s feared collapse, with residents raising alarm over the risk it posed.
A multi-agency assessment declared the storey building, which is located along the Abdel Nasser Road, structurally unfit.
As per Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Sherrif Nassir, the building had severe foundational compromise due to unapproved borehole drilling into the foundation, with ground floor columns collapsing by approximately three meters.
Following an assessment, residents living near the building were ordered to immediately evacuate and move to safer regions ahead of its demolition in a multi-agency operation.
Addressing members of the public on Tuesday evening, Nassir also ordered the temporary closure of all schools within the prescribed vicinity of demolition.
The governor also called for businesses within a 1.2-kilometre radius of the collapsing building to steer clear of their premises for at least eight hours on the demolition day.
Sharrif revealed that the demolition would be overseen by the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), who would use explosives to conduct the exercise. Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya went on to gazette the deployment of the military personnel responsible for conducting the exercise.
The KDF officers would be working jointly with officers from the National Police Service (NPS) to ensure the safety of the residents during the demolition process.
Today, high traffic was witnessed along the Nyali Bridge as residents rushed to cross to the other side ahead of the planned demolition of the building.
Matatus, tuk-tuks, and boda bodas all flooded the bridge as they rushed to migrate toward the northern mainland regions, including Nyali, Bamburi, and Kisauni, before the bridge and its subsequent road were closed to allow swift demolition.
