A number of real estate investors in Nakuru are counting losses following an earth tremor wreaking havoc in Nakuru.
The tremor demolished the Koinange Primary School wall sending the area residents into panic and also damaged roads with geologists predicting that worse repercussions were yet to be experienced.
A report by Kengen Hydropower Company showed that the town had tectonic shifts running approximately 5 kilometers underneath the ground which continue to be affected by the ongoing heavy rains.
The County Government of Nakuru froze all development projects across the town barring any constructions of storeyed buildings.
Supporting the decision, geologists concurred that no buildings exceeding four storeys should be erected in the town and went ahead to classify some of the areas as inhabitable by humans.
The directive came as a major blow to many investors whose multi-storey buildings were already in the pipeline as the town prepared to be elevated to city status.
A 2018 report by the Institute of Economic Affairs classified the town as the most preferred business hub by investors because of a reduced tax burden.
Prior to the report, Centum had noted that the land sector in Nakuru had gained a capital appreciation of 8.8% attributed to an increase in residential demands.
County Land Price Report had also shown that land prices in the county had gone up by 12%.
The Senate Committee on Devolution affirmed that the county had put in place the necessary infrastructure for the upgrade to city status.
Early June 2020, Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui disclosed that he was considering a plan to evacuate occupants of tall buildings in the region, with the county listed as a high-risk region for major and minor earthquakes.
The governor received a study conducted by the Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) and Geothermal Development Company (GDC) engineers who urged him to set up systems to monitor seismic activities in Nakuru.
The report also provided evidence that some areas had cracks and fissures making to tall buildings a danger. Geologists warned that the buildings could collapse after a period of time.
"Legally, there is a limit on the height of buildings that should be constructed in Nakuru. Construction of buildings that have more than three storeys must have a report from a geologist," read the report in part.
