More than 150 homes were razed in Ruruk, Turkana county on Thursday afternoon.
Area chief Thomas Ebei said a burning jiko was the cause of the fire.
A woman left her home with the jiko still on and strong winds spread the flames to neighbouring manyattas, he said.
"A child was rescued from the house and no injuries were reported. We were lucky the Kenya Red Cross and GSU reached the scene in time to calm the situation," Ebei added.
However, hundreds of residents were displaced and lost their property.
Ebei said firefighters were unable to contain the blaze for two hours leading to the destruction.
He called on the government and well wishers to aid affected victims.
