Five people among them a child were on Wednesday morning burnt to death in the Old town area, Mvita constituency, Mombasa County.
The area Red Cross Coordinator Rajab Musa confirmed the incident and said the fire tragedy was caused by a gas cylinder explosion.
“We lost five people among them a child as three other people escaped with injuries after residential houses caught fire in Kibokoni area in Old Town Mvita constituency,” he said.
Musa said the three people rescued are in critical condition at the Coast Referral Hospital where they are receiving treatment.
Abdallah Amur the area MCA said the fire extinguisher team collaborated with area residents to put off the fire.
“Our youths volunteered to help in putting off the fire before we the government arrived and this shows how united we are in helping each other,” he said.
He said three houses were affected by the inferno.
Investigations are still ongoing to find out how many families were affected.
Zainab who is an eyewitness said the fire tragedy started around 9 am and locals responded swiftly in extinguishing it.