South C building collapse: Family buries fallen guard as search for second victim continues

Ali Adan Galgallo, one of the security guards who died following the collapse of a multi-storey building in South C, Nairobi, has been buried at Lang’ata Muslim Cemetery.

An autopsy conducted hours before the burial showed the 31-year-old died as a result of multiple injuries sustained when the building came crashing down last Friday.

With this, the family headed straight to Masjid Nuur Mosque in South C, where prayers were held before the convoy proceeded to Lang’ata Muslim Cemetery.

Friends and leaders joined in paying their last respects to the deceased, as calls for compensation and speedy recovery efforts at the site of the tragedy were echoed.

“Both of them had very young families and their firstborns are like six or seven years old, so there is the issue of school, food, upkeep. We hope they’re going to be magnanimous enough to extend a hand of support,” said former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani.

Marsabit Senator Mohamed Chute added: “Tumepata maiti moja tumezika leo, tungetaka sana serikali ifanye juhudi watu wametoka mbali.”

In South C, the search and rescue mission entered its fifth day on Tuesday, with multi-agency teams combing through the rubble using excavators and specialised equipment.

The 24-hour operation, expected to conclude in the next two days, is aimed at locating the second guard who was also in the building on the fateful morning.

“When we open the assembly on 14th February, we are going to summon CEC planning, chief officers, directors, all of them. I have even written to ODPP. Let investigations be done because for something like this to happen, what if it was a school day at Kongoni Primary School here, I think leo tungekuwa na janga kubwa sana,” South C MCA Abass Khalif stated.

Detectives probing the case have issued summons to all parties involved in the project, as directed by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

Investigators are also awaiting a comprehensive report to establish the exact cause of the collapse, which will inform the next course of action.