Fire guts down building in Sipili

By Dennis Kipkirui

Fire brought down a wooden storey building in Sipili Tuesday morning. The tragedy which started at 9 am rendered more than six families homeless. 

Fire razing down building in Sipili [Photo By Bett Kipsang']

Unconfirmed information says that the inferno was started by a jiko which was left unattended in one of the houses. It is said the children in one of the houses lit the jiko and when it turned into flames and could not be controlled, rushed to the salon where their mother was to report the incident instead of informing next door neighbours. The neigbours realized it when it had already spread to their houses and managed to salvage few items. 

Eye witnesses said that it was not easy to put it out because the wooden building aggravated the situation since fire could easily spread in wood. The building is one of the oldest in Sipili centre and is believed to have been constructed in seventies.

Among those who lost the property was the lard lord who was occupying the 1^st floor after renting out ground floor. At some point she became frenzied and wanted to rush to her house to save what she called ‘vital documents for other property’ by her late husband in her custody. Members of the public turned out in hundreds to put out the fire but their effort was thwarted by wind and lack of enough facilities to use. 

Rescuers trying to salvage property Photo By Bett Kipsang'

Sipili centre do not have piped water. It relies heavily on water drawn from wells hundreds of metres away. This is also one of the challenges that faced the rescue team in putting off the inferno. The municipal council of Nanyuki which hosts the seat of power for county council manning the centre is far away and could not be of immediate help. Road network could also have hampered any help coming from outside since Sipili is 8km away from the tarmac road.

Last year, another building was also brought down by fire in the centre. As is the case with Tuesday’s, nothing was also salvaged.