At least six people have been confirmed dead following the crash of a light aircraft belonging to Amref Flying Doctors, a medical charity, in Nairobi, Kenya.
The Cessna plane, which departed from Wilson Airport on Thursday afternoon en route to Hargeisa, Somalia, lost radar and radio contact just three minutes after takeoff before crashing into a residential building in the Githurai area and bursting into flames.
Kiambu County Commissioner, Henry Wafula, confirmed that all four people on board — including doctors, nurses, and the pilot — were killed, along with two individuals on the ground.
Two other people sustained serious injuries. The Kenya Defence Forces and National Police Service have since launched search and recovery operations at the crash site.Amref Flying Doctors CEO, Stephen Gitau, stated that the charity is cooperating fully with aviation authorities and emergency responders to determine the cause of the accident.
The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority has deployed investigators to the scene. Eyewitnesses described hearing a loud explosion and seeing a fireball before smoke engulfed the area.
Meanwhile, in a separate tragedy, at least four people were killed when a train collided with a Kenya Pipeline Company staff bus near Naivasha, central Kenya.
The bus was transporting workers from a morning shift when the collision occurred at a railway crossing. Injured passengers were rushed to hospital for treatment.
