Nine people, including two Chinese, were Thursday killed after a crane collapsed at a construction site in Nairobi’s Hurlingham area.
One worker survived the crash and was rushed to the hospital following the mid-day accident.
Witnesses said 10 workers were dismantling the 60-metre crane when it collapsed and trapped the nine in the rubble.
Michael Odhiambo, a worker at the site, said the team was dismantling the crane after it had been used on the outside of the 14-storey building.
“It seems they did not realise the nuts tying it were loose and as they worked it went down. We heard a loud bang only to realise the crane was down,” he said.
He said among the victims were two Chinese engineers who were working on the crane.
Odhiambo said one of the workers was left hanging about 40 metres above the ground as he sought help.
“He was lucky because he had a safety belt against the clips on the wall.”
Odhiambo said workers are paid between Sh500 and Sh1,000 a day.
Kilimani police boss Muturi Mbogo said the machine collapsed as it was being dismantled by the technicians who had completed their work.
He said the person who survived with serious injuries was rushed to Nairobi Women’s Hospital.
“Nine people died. It is an incident that is under probe for now for us to know what happened,” he said.
The construction site is opposite the Department of Defence headquarters and was for the proposed Qwetu Residences. Police and military personnel were involved in the rescue efforts.
Emergency response teams arrived at the scene and attended to those who survived.
The management of Zhejiang Chenjian Construction (Africa) said in a statement that they were working with authorities to establish the facts of the accident.
General manager Zong Xudong said their crisis team was contacting families of the affected teams.
“We have since sealed off the site and are collaborating with the Kenya Police Service and the Directorate of Occupational Safety and Health Services (DOSHS) in conducting further regulations in the incident in accordance with laws and regulations governing construction sites in Kenya,” the statement read.
