An oil pipeline belonging to Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) burst on Thursday night, March 3, in Kisumu near Kanyamedha and Obunga causing oil spillage in the area.
The cause of the breakage is still unknown however, engineers from KPC moved quickly to seal off the area and repair the line.
Officers from the Kisumu fire fighting department also rushed to curb the looming danger of fire explosions.
The officials cautioned that despite the oil being diesel, it was still highly flammable and dangerous.
Deputy County Commissioner for Kisumu Central Sub-county, Hussein Hussein said they closed off the Kondele-Kisumu airport bypass following the incident.
Traffic marshalls were also deployed to man the roads and divert traffic.
Hussein added that an excavator was brought to the scene to help prevent oil from getting into nearby River Kisat and eventually endangering aquatic life in Lake Victoria.
The amount of oil lost in the spillage was not yet ascertained but the officials stated that they would release a preliminary report within the day.
Kisumu residents were warned from siphoning the oil.
In a similar event in 2020, an oil pipeline belonging to KPC broke in Eldoret, causing spillage into water wells in Maili Nne area.
KPC however distanced itself from the spillage saying that the areas affected were "too far" from its facilities.
Residents of Eldoret reportedly found few wells heavily contaminated with oil during a time when the area faced water shortages.
The spillage saw residents of Kibwezi East sue KPC and Nema, seeking compensation for the spill they claimed affected their crops and killed the livestock.
