Black smoke billowed from the fires on the outskirts of the city.
Nairobi, Kenya:
A truck laden with natural gas exploded in Kenya’s capital, causing a massive fire that killed at least two people and injured more than 200 people, a government spokesman said on Friday. Isaac Maigua Mwaura said the explosion caused a “huge fireball that spread widely” on social media platform X.
“As a result, the fire further damaged multiple vehicles and commercial properties, including many small and medium-sized enterprises,” he said, adding that “nearby residences were also on fire and a large number of residents remained inside due to the late hour of the night.” . “
A government spokesman said at least two people died from their injuries and 222 others were taken to hospitals across the capital.
Earlier, the Kenya Red Cross Society reported that nearly 300 people had been injured.
A fire broke out in the Embakasi neighborhood southeast of the capital on Thursday night.
Images broadcast by local media showed huge fireballs near several homes.
“We were in the house and heard a huge explosion,” James Ngog, who lives across the street from where the fire started, told AFP.
“The whole building was shaken by the huge shaking and it felt like it was going to collapse. At first we had no idea what was happening, it was like an earthquake.”
“I had a business down the road and it was completely destroyed.”
AFP reporters observed many residents in the area spending the night outside.
Police have cordoned off the affected area, but some people could be seen gathering their belongings and surveying the damage.
“The scene is now secure and a command center is in place to help coordinate rescue operations and other interventions,” Mwala said.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
