By CYRUS OMBATI
The contractor of a building where two workers were killed as they excavated soil in Nairobi’s Village Market area has agreed to compensate the families of the deceased and cater for the funeral expenses.
The director of Laxmanbhai Construction Mr Kirit Patel says the company has an insurance policy that will cater for the families of Basil Wambande and Bernard Mainga Kivuva who perished in the tragedy.
“Our insurance will take care of the funeral fees for the deceased and compensate the deaths. We will also take care of the medical expenses of those in hospital,” said Patel.
The families of the deceased had expressed fears that their loved ones would be forgotten after the deaths.
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He described the incident as an accident which was caused by weak surface where the workers were working.
The workers were buried alive as they excavated soil from a construction site of four storeyed office park near the Village Market shopping mall.
Patel who was accompanied by the company’s site engineer Mr Mahesh Jani said the incident was caused by a landslide of the soil that the workers were excavating.
“It collapsed before the construction and protection of the site had started. We have been following the laid down procedures for our work,” said Jani.
Police and officials from the Ministry of Labour have questioned the directors and witnesses of the incident. The company has been in the business for more than 60 years and built giant buildings like I&M Building, Nyayo House, GPO, Lonroh House, Kenindia, Serena Hotel, Westgate Mall and Longonot Place among others.
The workers were busy excavating a mountain of sand from a construction site of a building near the Tribe Hotel at the shopping mall when it blanketed them at about 2.30 pm on Monday.
Police had to save a foreman at the site by shooting to the air several times after the rowdy colleagues of those who had been trapped turned on him and beat him senseless blaming him for the deaths.
Two other workers who were injured are in hospital and out of danger, police said.
Cases of structures under construction collapsing are common in the city.
At least 20 people are killed annually in such incidents that are blamed on greedy contractors.
