The number of people still missing after the collapse of a building under construction in Nairobi's Eastleigh has fallen to 16, officials said, as the search and rescue operation entered its sixth day and authorities signalled it could soon be wound up.

Nairobi North Regional Commissioner Simon Osumba said the figure dropped from 20 after names submitted to the Kenya Red Cross were cross-checked by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI). At the start of the operation, 52 people had been reported missing.

Phone data guides the search

Of the 16 outstanding cases, Osumba said mobile phone records show that nine people last communicated from the area around the collapsed building. Investigators are still waiting for information from telecom firms on four other cases, while three families have not yet provided the phone numbers needed to trace their relatives.

As of Wednesday, no survivors had been pulled out and no bodies recovered, according to officials quoted by several outlets.

The National Disaster Management Unit said acoustic life-detection equipment deployed at the site had picked up signs of life under the rubble. Its director cautioned, however, that detecting life did not mean rescuers could immediately reach those trapped, citing the complex way the structure came down and the need to protect emergency crews. Because the building sits in a congested block, teams have only been able to work from one side.

The unit has said the operation is about 80 per cent complete, and reports indicate search work at the site could be concluded as early as Thursday.

Businesses reopen, site sealed

Shops across the road from the site, closed for more than five days, have been allowed to reopen following a request by Kamukunji MP Yusuf Hassan, provided they do not interfere with the rescue. Osumba said the collapse site itself remains sealed off to the public and that security has been beefed up around the area.

The disaster happened on Friday, October 23, when the multi-storey building on 9th Street gave way. Earlier this week, youths were seen scrambling for scrap metal at the edge of the rubble.

Calls for accountability

Officials of the Architectural Association of Kenya who toured the site called for accountability and stricter enforcement of building rules. The association's treasurer, architect Yassin Munyanya, described the scene as heartbreaking and said such a tragedy should never be allowed to happen again.

The Director of Public Prosecutions has already directed the DCI to investigate whether county officials, the developer, contractors or other professionals broke the law in approving, supervising or putting up the building. No one has been charged.

Photos: The Standard (Benard Orwongo); Kenyans.co.ke. Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.