A huge gas blast in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, has killed at least two people and injured at least 222.
A lorry carrying gas exploded in Embakasi district around 23:30 (20:30 GMT), “igniting a huge ball of fire”, a government spokesperson said.
Housing, businesses and cars were damaged with video showing a huge blaze raging close to blocks of flats.
Earlier, the government had said the blast happened at a gas plant. The cause is still being established.
Government spokesman Isaac Mwaura said the blast scene had now been secured and a command centre had been set up to help co-ordinate rescue operations.
“Kenyans are hereby advised to keep off the cordoned area in order to allow the rescue mission to be carried out [with] minimal disruptions,” he added.
The blaze is reported to have spread through several apartment complexes, leading to fears the number of casualties could rise further.
Witnesses told local media they had felt tremors immediately after the blast.
One of those hurt, Boniface Sifuna, described what had happened for Reuters news agency: “I got burnt by an exploding gas canister as I was trying to escape,” he said.
“It exploded right in front of me and the impact knocked me down and the flames engulfed me. I am lucky that I was strong enough to get away.
“An unnamed eyewitness speaking to the Nation newspaper spoke of “huge explosions, huge fireballs, people screaming and running everywhere for fear of more explosions”.
A Nation journalist living in the area said everyone had left their houses after the blast.
The Kenya Red Cross said on social media that crews had been “tirelessly battling the flames”.
Moses Lugalia has joined Kenya’s budding electric vehicle revolution – by exchanging the noisy roar of his petrol motorbike for the gentle hum of an electric one.
The biggest incentive to go electric for the 27-year-old rider of a motorbike taxi – known locally as a “boda-boda” – was the promise of saving money at a time when fuel prices keep rising.
Motorbike taxis are everywhere in Kenya, as in many African countries, because they are cheaper than cars, and can be better for navigating the notorious traffic jams in the capital, Nairobi.
Mr Lugalia has been in the motorbike taxi business for five years, transporting people and goods around Nairobi.
He would spend about 1,000 Kenyan shillings a day – just over $6 (£5) – on fuel when he used a petrol bike.Nairobi drivers earn on average about $10-15 a day, according to the country’s Boda-Boda Association.
Since going electric, Mr Lugalia says he spends no more than $1.42 a day – so his profits are now up and that makes him very happy.
“Because of the cost of petrol, I am able to save a lot more using my electric bike,” says Mr Lugalia with a smile.Instead of filling up with petrol, Mr Lugalia now swaps the bike’s electric battery once, sometimes twice, a day at one of the growing number of swap stations in Nairobi.
A fully charged battery will allow him to drive for about 80km (50 miles), almost a whole day’s work.
“Electric is the future in Kenya,” Mr Lugalia tells the BBC.
The Kenyan government thinks so too. President William Ruto launched a national “e-mobility” programme on 1 September 2023.
Motorbikes and three-wheeled tuk-tuks, or auto rickshaws, are the centrepiece of a move to make transport green and reduce air pollution.
The government hopes the prospect of cheaper running costs will create a gearshift in the minds of other drivers of the ubiquitous boda-bodas, most of whom still use petrol or diesel.
There are about three million boda-boda riders in Kenya, according to the transport minister, and the UN estimates some five million people benefit from their incomes.
Taking a boda-boda is a convenient, fast and cheap way to get around.
But many of the motorcycles are old, poorly maintained and big polluters. Although they produce less carbon dioxide than cars, they release more nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons – which affect air quality and the climate.
Nairobi is one of the world’s most heavily congested cities. Its population swells from about 4.5 million to more than six million people during rush-hours.
The daily gridlock can be a choking nightmare for commuters – transport accounts for about 40% of Nairobi’s air pollution, and globally for about 20% of greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Clean Air Fund.
Other major climate change culprits are deforestation, agriculture, manufacturing, and the open burning of waste.
Africa contributes only 2% to 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, but it suffers disproportionately from climate change, according to the UN Environment Programme.
Nevertheless, Kenya’s government sees a shift to green transport as vital to help meet its climate goals. It wants more than 200,000 electric bikes on the road by the end of 2024.
On average e-bikes emit 75% less total greenhouse gases.
So far only about 2,000 boda-boda drivers have switched from petrol to electric.
A Kenyan senator was on Wednesday arrested for allegedly conspiring to steal $7.6 million in scholarship funds for the country’s students in Finland and Canada.
The senator was arrested alongside two former county officials linked to the scholarship scandal.
The suspects were dragged before the Kenyan High Court to face 11 count charges but granted bail.
The embattled senator had previously denied misappropriating the money.
On Thursday, a magistrate ruled the trial could not begin until all the suspects were presented in court.
The Kenyan police had, on Wednesday, tweeted that one of the suspects, Joseph Maritim, had fled.
However, Mr Maritim’s lawyer, Zephania Yego, told the court that his client was unaware of the charges when he travelled to Canada on 13 August.
Mr Yago said his client would return to take a plea.
Kenyan local media report that the prosecution plans to appeal against the release of the senator and his co-accused persons.
Kenya authorities announced on Thursday, April 27, said they had arrested another pastor over the “mass killing of his followers” just days after the discovery of dozens of bodies linked to another church.
Ezekiel Odero, the head of the New Life Prayer Centre and Church, “has been arrested and is being processed to face criminal charges related to the mass killing of his followers,” Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki said in a statement.
“The said church has been shut down. The over 100 people who were holed up at the premises have been evacuated and will be required to record statements,” he added.
Odero’s arrest comes on the heels of an ongoing investigation into Paul Mackenzie Nthenge, the cult leader accused of the deaths of 98 people linked to his church.
The self-styled preacher is accused of urging his followers to starve themselves to death as a path to God. Most of those found in mass graves have been children, and police fear the death toll could rise as their search widens.
Kindiki had described the case as “the clearest abuse of the constitutionally enshrined human right to freedom of worship.”
Nthenge was arrested again last month, according to local media, after two children starved to death in the custody of their parents.
He was released on bail of 100,000 Kenyan shillings ($700) but surrendered to police after a raid on his property in the Shakahola forest uncovered bodies.
A teenager has been nabbed with 20 stolen underwear following complaints at Tegeyat village, Mosop sub-county, Nandi County of Kenya.
It was reported that some residents of the community complained about their underwear disappearing at night from their clotheslines after washing them.
A door-to-door search was launched within the village before the suspect identified as Joel Kimurgor was caught with the undergarments inside his house.
Defending himself, the teenager said he’s been under pressure from his girlfriend to buy her inner wears as a sign of love.
Locals have condemned the act as an abomination in the community.
At least 47 people have died fasting over a promise that they would meet Jesus if they starved themselves to death.
They are members of the Good News International Church in Kenya.The church’s pastor, Paul Makenzi, has been held by the police authorities over the death.
On Saturday, the number of those dead was 39.Kenyan authorities discovered 39 corpses on the property of Mr Makenzi, a pastor now in police custody after instructing his followers to fast till they die to meet Jesus in heaven.
The death toll jumped to 47 by Sunday night.
Speaking on the discovery, Malindi Sub-County police chief John Kemboi said more shallow graves on the land owned by the pastor arrested on April 14 for cult-related activities still need to be dug up.
Police discovered 15 malnourished people in the church.
Four of them died shortly later. On the pastor’s orders, the followers said they were fasting to die to meet Jesus.
The pastor had been previously arrested and detained by the Kenyan police over the deaths of children, first in 2019 and in March 2023, but later let off the hook on bail.
A shoe trader identified as Joshua Kimanzi Lingi, has been arraigned before a court in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, for assaulting his wife.
He reportedly assaulted his wife after she eloped with another man. The incident occurred while she was doing laundry on the ground floor of a residential building in Mathare North.
The Standard reported that he grabbed and tried strangling her before snatching her mobile phone after neighbours responded to her cries for help.
Her attempt to get her phone back did not yield results as Lingi allegedly smashed it against the stairs before leaving the vicinity.
The mobile phone is said to be worth Ksh28,461.
A police report read;
“At about 11 am on the material day, LMN said she was on the ground floor of the residential building doing laundry when her estranged husband pounced on her from behind then grabbed and strangled her.”
Lingi was arrested after the case was reported to the police by his wife.
While appearing before the court, Lingi through his lawyer denied the allegation levelled against him, and also claimed that she destroyed the phone and later pinned the blame on him.
He also told the court that his wife left him and eloped with another man.
Lingi further pleaded with the court to be lenient on him since he has been providing for his children who are not in his custody.
He was released on a Ksh20,000 bond pending a hearing on January 19, 2023.
Former Super Eagles assistant coach, Emmanuel Amuneke has been appointed new head coach of Zambia Super League side, Zanaco FC.
According to Lusaka Times, Amuneke has agreed to the terms of the deal and is expected in the South African country in the coming days to pen his contract with the club.
Zanaco last won the MTN/FAZ Super League Division in 2016 and came second in 2021. They lost their last league match 1-0 at home on Sunday against Forest Rangers.
Amuneke led Tanzania to break the 39-year jinx after he qualified them for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt, and he will be aiming to revive Zanaco who are currently struggling.
Zanaco is currently 9th on the log after winning two matches and losing two
A 29-year-old woman was on Monday, September, 12, arraigned at the Milimani Law Courts, for allegedly stabbing her friend at a club in Nairobi, Kenya.
In a charge sheet, Sheila Achieng is accused of having committed the act at the Eureka Club located along Tom Mboya street on Thursday, September 8, 2022.
She allegedly stabbed Esther Gathoni Ngatia on the head and chest, using a broken liquor bottle, after accusing the victim of attempting to snatch her man.
“On 8th September 2022, at Eureka club along Tom Mboya street in the CBD of Nairobi County, Achieng’ intentionally and Unlawfully did grievous harm to Esther Gathoni Ngatia by stabbing her on the head and chest with a broken spirit bottle,” the charge sheet read in part.
A witness told the court that Achieng accused the victim of wanting to snatch her boyfriend.
“Sheila stabbed her friend with a broken spirit bottle for allegedly attempting to snatch her man at Club Eureka in Nairobi,” the witness stated.
William Ruto was on Tuesday September 13, sworn in as Kenya’s fifth president following his narrow victory over Raila Odinga in a bitterly fought but largely peaceful election.
Tens of thousands of spectators turned up at Kasarani stadium in Nairobi to witness the event which Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is representing President Muhammadu Buhari at.
The Vice President was accompanied on the trip by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Zubairu Dada, and the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Senator Babafemi Ojudu. With his hand on a Bible, the 55-year-old swore to preserve and protect the country’s constitution.
Defeated candidate Raila Odinga did not attend, saying as he had “serious concerns” about his opponent’s victory.
Mr Ruto won the election with 50.5% of the vote, to Mr Odinga’s 48.8%. Mr Odinga has alleged that the result was rigged, but the Supreme Court has ruled the election was free and fair. Ruto’s campaign had portrayed him as a “hustler” with a humble background of going barefoot and selling chickens by the roadside, a counterpoint to the political dynasties represented by Kenyatta and Odinga.
But Ruto received powerful political mentoring as a young man from former President Daniel arap Moi, who oversaw a one-party state for years before Kenyans successfully pushed for multiparty elections.
Ruto now speaks of democracy and has vowed there will be no retaliation against dissenting voices.
President Uhuru Kenyatta has declared three days of national mourning over the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
In a statement on Friday, the outgoing president noted that the mourning period will commence on the eve of Friday, September 9, 2022, and end, at sunset, on Monday, September 12.
President Kenyatta also directed all Kenyan-led state agencies, both local and abroad, to ensure that all Kenyan flags within their premises are flown at half mast during the three-day period.
“The Flag of the Republic of Kenya shall be flown at half-mast at State House and all Kenyan Diplomatic Missions, Public Buildings and Public Grounds, all Military Bases, Posts and Stations, on all Naval Vessels of the Republic of Kenya, and however elsewhere throughout the Republic of Kenya; from dawn on today until sunset on Monday, 12th September 2022,” said President Kenyatta.
“Our national flag shall be flown at half-mast for the same length of time at all High Commissions, Embassies, Consulates, Diplomatic Offices and other facilities of the Republic of Kenya abroad.
While sending out his condolences to the Queen’s family and the people of Britain, President Kenyatta went on to hail the deceased matriarch as a gallant leader who will go down in history as one of the most dedicated members of the Royal Family.
“Our deepest sympathy and condolences go out to His Majesty King Charles III and the rest of the Royal Family.
Rarely has one person so epitomized the very best of humanity and leadership through selfless public service as the Late Queen Elizabeth II did in her 70 years at the helm of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, and in her life of 96 years,” said President Kenyatta.
“In all that, as governments rose and fell, new nations were born, and the geopolitical sands shifted back and forth; Queen Elizabeth II remained our one constant and an unshakeable rock of dedication to duty, grace, sacrifice, public service, and the commitment to God, Country, and Family.
May God rest her soul in peace.” Queen Elizabeth II, the United Kingdom’s longest-serving monarch, died on September 8, 2022, at the age of 96, at Balmoral, Scotland.
Kenya is one of 36 Commonwealth countries for whom the Queen has served as a symbolic figurehead.
Superstar, David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, has congratulated Kenya’s president-elect, William Ruto, on his victory in the country’s supreme court verdict.
Kenya’s Supreme Court on Monday upheld William Ruto’s election as the country’s president-elect.
Ruto, Kenya’s Deputy President, was declared the winner of the August 9 election by the Independent and Electoral Boundaries Commission, but his rival, Raila Odinga, had filed a suit challenging the election results.
Delivering the ruling Monday morning, Chief Justice Martha Koome struck out Odinga’s suit and upheld Ruto’s election as the Kenya president-elect.Shortly after the ruling, Davido tweeted,
“Congratulations to Dr William Samoei Ruto on being declared 5th President of the Republic of #Kenya @WilliamsRuto. Also, Congratulations to the people of Kenya! DEMOCRACY WINS AGAIN.”
During the ruling, Koome said, “This is a unanimous decision. The petitions are hereby dismissed, as a consequence we declare the first respondent (Ruto) as president-elect.”
The court dismissed all nine issues of contention in the suit.
Koome declared that the alleged irregularities in the election “…were not of such magnitude as to affect the final results of the presidential election.”
By the apex court’s judgement, the 55-year-old incumbent deputy president, Ruto, will now assume office as Kenya’s president on September 13, 2022.
Kingsley Kanunta Kanu, brother to the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu has claimed that the Kenyan government has confirmed that his brother did not undergo extradition proceedings in the East African nation.
Kanu disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, shared by the IPOB leader’s top lawyer, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor.
It would be recalled that Ejimakor had maintained that his client was “abducted” in Kenya before being brought to Nigeria in June.
According to him, since Kanu is a British citizen and entered Kenya with his British passport, he ought not to have been brought to Nigeria for any reason without valid court orders for his extradition, noting that it was against international laws to illegally arrest someone on foreign land, an act that amounts to “abduction”.
He added that Kanu’s fundamental human rights were grossly violated by those who masterminded his “rendition” to Nigeria, accusing the Kenyan Government of culpability.
Ejimakor explained that Kanu cannot be lawfully prosecuted by the Federal Government of Nigeria unless the issue of his extra-ordinary rendition is first discharged, and if he is to stand trial in Nigeria, he will first be returned to Kenya and Britain where he resides before Nigeria will apply for his extradition in a British court.
However, Kanunta Kanu claimed that the Kenyan government filed its suit in respect of the separatist leader’s matter on Tuesday, and part of their defence was that ‘there are no extradition proceedings to justify that it is responsible for Nnamdi Kanu’s extradition.
According to the statement, Kanu claimed that following his brother’s extraordinary rendition in June this year, the Kenyan Government had publicly issued a series of statements, denying its complicity in the abominable act.
“In the said defence that it filed in Court, Kenya has not only persisted in its denials, but it went further to confirm that my brother was denied the benefit of the due process of extradition in Kenya or even a lawful arrest,” he said.
In particular, the defence the Kenyan Government filed in court stated in major part ‘That there are no extradition proceedings to justify that the Government of Kenya is responsible for the subject’s extradition.”
The statement read: “That there is no OB record from any of the Police stations within the Country to indicate that the subject in issue was lawfully arrested and detained for purposes of commencing extradition proceedings.
“It needs to be emphasized that above admissions have officially confirmed our long-held position that Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s transfer from Kenya to Nigeria is unlawful, not lawful as was claimed by the Nigerian Government.
“This latest revelation, officially made in open Court by Kenya, further solidifies our abiding position that the Nigerian Government cannot benefit from its wrong by subjecting my brother to trial.
As the next hearing date unfolds to 7th December 2021, more legal processes will be in view. Our immediate goal is to secure the unconditional release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu from detention.”
Ifeanyi Ejiofor, one of the counsels to incarcerated leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has accused the United Kingdom government of working with Nigeria and other security agencies who facilitated the ‘kidnap’ of the Biafra agitator in Kenya
Ejiofor made the disclosure on his Facebook page on Friday while stressing that the British Government has not visited Kanu in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since his arrest.
“When I talk about a collaboration between the British Government and those that kidnapped our client in Kenya, I meant every word spoken there.
Thankfully, force of law has been activated through judicial process, before the British Court to ensure that their statutory obligation over their Nationale is asserted, without further ado.
“In this political/media trial of our client, I see a handful of compromised socia media platforms, who are ostensibly feeding fat from the national treasury.
“But the majority of distinguished media houses are guided by good conscience in their reportage. We must definitely commend them,” he said.
Ejiofor also debunked claims that the British High Commission has provided assistance to Kanu, saying that despite several assurances by the Commission that they will provide consular assistance for Kanu who is their citizen, they have not followed through with their promises as they are yet to visit the IPOB leader.
For your information, neither the British High Commissioner in Nigeria nor any one representing/acting for them has visited our client Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, at DSS detention facility, where he is currently being held incommunicado. I can authoritatively confirm this position to you today.
“Stop believing the falsehood being dished out in the public space by mischief makers. The purveyors of fake news have always been at it.
“May Chukwuokike continue to strengthen and protect him in this trying time,” he wrote
A son to a couple who were brutally murdered together with three others in Karura area, Kiambu county, Kenya, has confessed to the crime.
The 22-year-old university IT student identified as Lawrence Simon Warunge, was arrested on Friday, January 8, after he went missing following the gruesome murder of his parents, brother, his cousin and a mason at their Karura home in Kiambu County on Tuesday night.
Police said they arrested Lawrence as a prime suspect into the incident after a three-day manhunt.
After he was arrested, he later confessed to the incident and led police to a residence in Mai Mahiu area on Saturday where they recovered the murder weapon, a kitchen knife, clothes, shoes and a piece of paper.
He had thrown the exhibits to a pit latrine. Police dug the wall of the latrine and used ropes to recover the exhibits from the 20-feet deep pit.
He also took police to an open field in the same area where he said he burnt some of the evidence.
Lawrence claims he killed the five alone but police said they are open to a possibility there were other players.
The most chilling part is where Lawrence said he caught up with his father, Nicholas Njenga Warunge as he escaped from him after he broke one of his legs after jumping off a balcony.
“He says the father was hit by an electric cable as he ran away and jumped off the balcony and was indisposed further after he fractured a leg. This gave him time to catch up with him and he killed him like a snake,” said an officer who had heard the confession.
Lawrence’s girlfriend who lived in the house in Mai Mahiu is also being held for interrogation.
Lawrence said after he murdered the five using a kitchen knife at about 8 pm he jumped onto a motorcycle and rode up to the nearby Wangige shopping centre where he took a public service vehicle to Mai Mahiu while carrying the killer weapon and other recovered evidence. The bodaboda rider is yet to be found for questioning.
In his chilling confession, he said on arrival at Mai Mahiu, he went to an open field in the area where he burnt some of them on Tuesday, January 5 at about 11 pm.
Detectives from the Homicide Unit visited the site and collected the debris for analysis. The officers and the suspect donned white surgery clothes as they visited the scenes where he disposed of the exhibits.
Lawrence told police that his parents were “satanic and killers” hence deserved to die.
Lawrence is a university student in the city and was initially thought to have gone to school. His mobile phone signal was traced to Mai Mahiu, Naivasha. It was later traced to Thika and later to Kabete area on Friday.
Police said the suspect went to a relative’s home in Ngongoro area to seek refuge there before they were alerted Friday night. He was later arrested when he told police his parents were “satanic and cruel”.
Police had thought at least five people were involved in the murder of Nicholas Njoroge Warunge, his wife Annie, sons Christian and Maxwell and a construction worker James Kinyanjui.
Their badly mutilated bodies were found in their Kiambaa home on Tuesday and Wednesday. It is believed a dispute over property was the motive of the murder.
The bodies were moved to the mortuary where a post-mortem is expected on Monday. Nothing was stolen from the compound during the incident.
Warunge had arrived in Kenya from the USA where he worked as a nurse for Christmas holidays about 11 days before his murder.
His two elder daughters survived the cold blood murder because they had the previous day gone to school. Neighbours said they are in secondary school.
Annie who worked with Kiambu County Government as a psychologist nurse and two of their children were found murdered and the bodies lying in the compound.
Lawrence told police he made his way into the house through the rear door, where he found his mother Annie, and hacked her to death before slitting her throat.
The commotion in the kitchen drew the attention of the second victim, his 13-year-old cousin, Maxwell Njenga, who he confronted along the corridor and cut in the head and throat. Maxwell had just turned 13 on December 26, 2020.
His blood brother Christian Njenga was killed as well and his throat slit on his bed.
He claimed his father Warunge was in the master bedroom upstairs at the time of the attack. He rushed to the balcony on sensing danger and jumped down where he broke his leg but he caught up with him and stabbed him 34 times before slitting his throat at near the gate and left for the dead.
Also killed in the same style was the mason, James Kinyanjui who was in the home at the time of the attack. Lawrence claims he killed them all.
Kiambu police boss Ali Nuno said they will also revisit past unsolved murder incidents that happened in the family and are probably related to the latest murder. Last Tuesday’s incident was the fifth in the family according to Nuno.
He said the first victim was killed in 2016 when one Allan Warunge, a brother to Njoroge was killed.
He was shot for the first time and confined on a wheelchair before his assailants pursued him later.
“There was an incident which involved Alan Njire Waruinge in 2016 who was a victim after being shot twice after being confined on a wheelchair. And there was Kenneth Mungai Waruinge who was assassinated alongside with his niece thereafter,” said Nuno.
“Kinyanjui Kamau, a family member was also killed in unclear circumstances.”
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