Nairobi County Evacuates 156 Tenants: Cracked Ten-Storey Kabiria Block Declared DangerousNairobi County Evacuates 156 Tenants: Cracked Ten-Storey Kabiria Block Declared Dangerous
Key Highlights
- Nairobi City County has ordered 156 tenants out of a ten-storey Kabiria apartment block after planning engineers declared the building dangerous and ruinous.
- The county says the development was built without the planning permission that the Physical and Land Use Planning Act requires.
- The evacuation comes a week into the Eastleigh collapse search, where Mwenendo has asked for a public list of high-rise approvals.
Nairobi City County has evacuated 156 tenants from a ten-storey residential block on Kabiria Road in Dagoretti after planning engineers declared the building dangerous and ruinous on Saturday 31 October 2026.
The order matters because the county says the block was built without planning permission, the same question now hanging over Nairobi's high-rise approvals after the Eastleigh collapse. Tenants have lost their homes at short notice, and the county has not said who will meet the cost of relocating them.
What tenants found and what the engineers said
Tenants noticed a large crack in one of the building's walls and alerted Riruta Police Station and county officials, according to police accounts. Police said the report reached them at about 3.45pm, through an assistant director at the Nairobi County Fire Engine Department.
A team of county planning engineers led by Engineer Rex Maroko inspected the property and advised everyone to leave immediately. All 156 tenants complied without incident, although some left household belongings behind. The cause of the cracks has not been determined.
The enforcement notice
The county's notice, issued under the Physical and Land Use Planning Act No. 13 of 2019 and county by-laws, describes the property (Nairobi Block 66/7880) as a dangerous and ruinous permanent structure with ten levels of occupation. It alleges the development was built without the required planning permission and does not comply with the Act or the Building Code 2024.
The notice directs the owner to vacate and remove the structure. If the owner does not comply, the county says it can take enforcement action and recover the costs as a civil debt. Authorities have secured the building, and police are guarding it.
Pressure on Nairobi's approvals record
The evacuation follows the Eastleigh building collapse. As Mwenendo earlier reported, the 9th Street building fell on 23 October with plans submitted but never approved. Officials said on Sunday that 16 people remain unaccounted for at that site.
Mwenendo has called for a public list of high-rise approvals by 30 November. The county has not yet published the Kabiria building's approval history, and Mwenendo will update this story when it does.
In Summary
- Who was affected?
- 156 tenants of a ten-storey residential block on Kabiria Road, Riruta Ward, Dagoretti, Nairobi.
- What happened?
- Nairobi City County engineers declared the building dangerous and ruinous after tenants reported a large wall crack, and all tenants were evacuated.
- When did it happen?
- Saturday 31 October 2026, with police alerted at about 3.45pm.
- Where is the building?
- Kabiria Road, Riruta Ward, Dagoretti, Nairobi (Nairobi Block 66/7880).
- Why did the county act?
- The county says the block was built without planning permission and does not comply with the Physical and Land Use Planning Act or the Building Code 2024.
- What happens next?
- The notice orders the owner to vacate and remove the structure; the county can recover enforcement costs as a civil debt. The cause of the cracks is not yet known.