As per reports, 61 persons died and 116 were seriously burned due to a fire today (12.09.2011) at 1000 hr local time. The fire occurred possibly due to a cigarette butt thrown on a pool of gasoline that got accumulated from a leaking pipe passing through densely populated slum area and where people gathered to collect the gasoline. As per one report, the pipeline might have been punctured deliberately to collect the fuel. Fire fighters had difficult time in controlling the fire.The leaking gasoline floated on a nearby sewer and it resembled like a burning river after the blast and resultant fire.
A report says, fire started after a fuel tankers dumped the fuel in the open sewer flowing through the slums.
If this is the reason, it is most unpardonable act and the guilty should be punished. If the reason is leak from the pipe line, then large quantity must have escaped from the line into the sewer till it is identified either by pressure drop or somebody noticed and informed the company. Both the company and the authority that cleared pipeline layout are responsible for the incident in this case. One can't lay the pipelines through populated areas. If the settlers came after piping job, then the company with the help of local police should have got it vacated. Such piping should terminate at a place far off from the habitation and should be protected. As per the reports, when a news channel asked the resident two years ago, he don't want to move from the place though he feels that there is a chance of the fire that occurred today.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/09/12/kenya.fire/
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-kenya-fire-20110913,0,5237204.story?track=rss
http://www.africareview.com/News/Riddle+of+Nairobi+pipeline+fire+that+killed+75/-/979180/1235086/-/10hj59jz/-/
Video: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14887938