2009 Nakumatt supermarket fire
Encyclopedia
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, caught fire on 28 January 2009. Twenty-nine remains have thus far been located in the rubble of the destroyed Nakumatt
Nakumatt
Nakumatt is a Kenyan supermarket chain. Nakumatt is an abbreviation for Nakuru Mattresses.-Overview:, it has twenty-seven stores across Kenya and employs over 4,000 people...
supermarket, with police investigating a tip that security guards locked exit doors in an effort to prevent looting. However the locking of the doors on the ground floor had no effect on the victims, as they were all found on the floor above. The fire allegedly started near the only staircase accessible to the public, trapping the victims in the shop. One other man died after leaping from the building to escape the flames. Forty-seven people are still missing. The bodies of the dead are "charred beyond recognition".
Official reports say one person died in hospital from injuries brought on by poisonous fumes and injuries sustained in the inferno but another 39 were unaccounted for and were officially reported as "missing". The emergency services have been criticised for what the Kenyan media
Media of Kenya
There are more than 90 FM stations, 14 TV stations and unconfirmed number of print newspapers and magazines in Kenya. They mainly use English as the primary language, with some media houses using Swahili. Use of vernacular languages is commonly used in broadcast media, mostly radio.Kenya’s...
view as an inadequate response to the blaze. Following the blaze, the Daily Nation
Daily Nation
The Daily Nation is a Kenyan independent newspaper. It is the most influential newspaper in Kenya with a daily circulation of about 205,000 copies. The total readership is likely to be higher as each copy is read by a large number of people...
reported that Nairobi's three million inhabitants were served only by one fire station situated close to a traffic-choked business district. Although it happened on 28 January, it was not widely reported across the world until two days later when the full scale of the fire was recognised.
Inferno
The fire began on 28 January 2009, a Wednesday afternoon, when the Woolworths Building which housed Nakumatt Downtown Nairobi caught fire at 3:00 PM. The blaze which was still being fought twenty-four hours later. A power transformerTransformer
A transformer is a device that transfers electrical energy from one circuit to another through inductively coupled conductors—the transformer's coils. A varying current in the first or primary winding creates a varying magnetic flux in the transformer's core and thus a varying magnetic field...
had earlier blown and there were reports that gas cylinder
Gas cylinder
A gas cylinder is a pressure vessel used to store gases at above atmospheric pressure. High pressure gas cylinders are also called bottles. Although they are sometimes colloquially called "tanks", this is technically incorrect, as a tank is a vessel used to store liquids at ambient pressure and...
s on sale at the supermarket and chemicals at a hardware shop in the neighbouring Alibhai Shariff Building had fueled the inferno. Members of the public helped to fight the blaze which ensued. Thousands of people were evacuated from their offices in downtown Nairobi as plumes of black smoke were sent into the sky overhead. The smoke forced the evacuation of some nearby buildings, with police employing whips, horses and teargas to beat back curious crowds. One man died after leaping from an upper floor of the burning supermarket, whilst one other man, Nakumatt employee Jeremiah Omoyo, also leaped off the roof to escape the blaze but survived. Another Nakumatt employee told Kenya's The Standard
The Standard (Kenya)
The Standard is one of the leading newspapers in Kenya with a 20% market share. It is the oldest newspaper in the country owned by The Standard Group, which also runs the Kenya Television Network . The Standard Group is headquartered at the I&M Bank Tower in Nairobi.- History :The newspaper was...
newspaper that the crowd were encouraging the trapped customers and employees to jump. The Kenyan media has criticised the emergency response, claiming that firefighters arrived late and in inadequate numbers. Daily Nation
Daily Nation
The Daily Nation is a Kenyan independent newspaper. It is the most influential newspaper in Kenya with a daily circulation of about 205,000 copies. The total readership is likely to be higher as each copy is read by a large number of people...
, the largest newspaper in Kenya, remarked on the way the fire was handled and responded to by saying, "It is fair to say that ours is a modern city with an 18th century fire-fighting infrastructure." The City Council Fire Brigade were helped by 2 private companies with fire engines - G4S and Knight Support. This is the first of two tragedies to happen in Kenya in the same week; at least 113 people were killed when an oil spill caught fire
2009 Kenyan oil spill ignition
An oil spill ignition occurred in Molo, Kenya, on 31 January 2009 and resulted in the deaths of at least 113 people and critical injuries to over 200 more. The incident occurred when an oil spill from an overturned truck burst into flames as onlookers attempted to obtain remnants of the spilled...
in Molo
Molo, Kenya
Molo is a town in western Kenya. It is served by a branch of Kenya Railways, formerly the Uganda Railway, East African Railways Corporation until 1977. Molo hosts a town council and an administrative division in the Nakuru District of Rift Valley Province...
.
Casualties
Actress and radio presenter Angel WainainaAngel Wainaina
Angela "Angel" Wainaina was a Kenyan actress, radio presenter and rapper.-Life:Wainaina was born 1983 in Kawangware, a slum of Nairobi, Kenya. She joined a drama club at Kambui High School. She was a runner up at the Miss Kenya competition in 2005. She was a poet and underground rapper...
, known for her role as Sergeant Maria on the Cobra Squad TV series, was one of the victims and her body has been identified. Peter Serry
Peter Serry
Peter Serry was a Kenyan football player, coach and administrator.As a youth player Serry played for Mathare Youth Sports Association , which operates in the Mathare slum in Nairobi. Among other achievements, he was part of the team that won the U13 category at Norway Cup in 1995...
, the CEO of Tusker FC football club was at the supermarket when the fire broke and has been missing since then, while Tusker FC coach James Nandwa, who accompanied Serry, escaped with minor injuries.
Rebuilding
The remains of the Woolworths building that housed the supermarket were scrapped after the fire. The building is set to be rebuilt and according to National Museums of KenyaNational Museums of Kenya
The National Museums of Kenya is a State Corporation that manages Museums, Sites and Monuments in Kenya. It also practices scientific research. Its headquarters and the National Museum are located on Museum Hill, near Uhuru Highway between Central Business District and Westlands in Nairobi...
, it is a historical building that should resemble the previous one and built using red bricks. On the other hand, Steve Oundo, the chairman of Architectural Association of Kenya
Architectural Association of Kenya
The Architectural Association of Kenya is a building professionals organization in Kenya. Membership is drawn from five major disciplines:*Architects*Quantity surveyors*Engineers*Town planners*Landscape architects...
prefers a remembrance hall on the site, instead of rebuilding the supermarket.
Nakumatt chain
Nakumatt is a supermarket chain that has 18 stores across Kenya, employing 3,200 people and planning to expand to UgandaUganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
, Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
and other East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
n countries. Nakumatt is a wholly Kenyan company owned by the Atul Shah family and Hotnet Ltd. On 23 August, Nakumatt opened its first store outside Kenya in the Union Trade Center, in Kigali
Kigali
Kigali, population 965,398 , is the capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is situated near the geographic centre of the nation, and has been the economic, cultural, and transport hub of Rwanda since it became capital at independence in 1962. The main residence and offices of the President of...
, Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
.