The explosion at a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) plant in Nairobi’s Embakasi area on Thursday night has been attributed to the incorrect refilling of cylinders, according to the latest government update.
In a statement issued jointly on Friday evening by Energy Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir and his Interior counterpart Prof. Kithure Kindiki , the government noted that the gas cylinders were refilled using direct manifold connections to the LPG tanker.
This unsafe practice significantly heightened the risk of leakage and resulted in the tragic explosion, that claimed three lives and injured at least 280 others.
“Preliminary findings indicate that on the fateful night, the refilling of LPG cylinders was done using direct manifold connections to the LPG tanker increasing the risk of leakage and explosion,” the statement reads.
As a response to the incident, the government has announced plans to demolish all illegal gas storage and filling plants across the country.
Additionally, a series of new measures will be implemented to prevent similar tragedies in the future. The government officials, led by Chirchir and Kindiki, emphasized the need for a comprehensive risk assessment exercise for all LPG plants to ensure compliance.
They also vowed to impose penalties on operators caught filling cylinders without authorization from the brand owners.
