Police are investigating a fire that forced over 200 families to spend Sunday night in the cold after their homes were burnt down in Makadara sub-county, Nairobi.
Mr Timon Odingo, the head of Makadara Police, confirmed the incident, saying it happened around 2 a.m. in the Mukuru-Mariguini slum, but the cause of the fire is unknown.
“The fire started from one shanty before it quickly spread and burnt other houses after it was fanned by a strong wind,” Mr Odingo noted.
The police commander also stated that property of unknown value was reduced to ashes in the night inferno, but no deaths or injuries were reported.
According to Mr Charles Mwatha, the area chief, three fire engines from the city-county government were unable to reach the scene of the tragedy due to a lack of roads.
The inaccessibility is being blamed on land grabbers who have encroached on roads that had previously been set aside for emergencies by the previous administration.
According to Mr Mwatha, youths assisted the fire department team in connecting hosepipes from the Mater Hospital field to the scene of the tragedy.
