Kericho: 6-year-old who was trapped in the sinking building found dead

The 6-year-old child who could not be accounted for last night after a four-storey apartment sunk in Kericho town has been found dead.

Kericho County police commander Silas Gichunge confirmed the incident saying the body was discovered by the rescue team last night.

Gichunge said the child was believed to have been trapped inside as the rest of the tenants were trying to escape to safety when the building started sinking.

He said the rescue mission was halted immediately after the body was pulled out and has since resumed with a view to establishing whether there are more casualties trapped inside.

The apartment at Tebs View Court sunk under unclear circumstances but some tenants claimed that it had allegedly been constructed on top of a septic tank.

Tebs View Court that has 6 two-bedroomed houses sank at around 8pm.

Most of the occupants managed to escape but there were fears that a 6-year-old boy was still trapped inside one of the houses.

According to eyewitnesses, only the upper storey remained intact.

Tenants revealed that the apartment had started showing signs of collapsing since Sunday but apparently pleas to the owner to evacuate them fell on deaf ears.