Nairobi Crew Retrieves First Body From Eastleigh Collapse

Recovery teams in Kenya's capital worked through a second week of searching a collapsed commercial building, where authorities retrieved a body on Friday. Thermal imaging equipment supplied by a Chinese team had earlier detected two people beneath the rubble.

The remains of a woman were recovered from the site in Eastleigh, a busy commercial district of Nairobi. Her body was crushed by the concrete and steel of the 18-story structure, which had been under construction when it came down last Friday.

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja said the building lacked the required construction approvals. He also said leasing finished units on the ground floor and basement levels violated rules that require inspection and an occupancy certificate before a building can be occupied. Four people were rescued from the structure on Saturday. Sixteen others remained unaccounted for as of Friday.

Families of the missing have camped at the collapse site for a week. Some reported losing confidence in finding survivors after the 72-hour window following the collapse passed, saying they doubted anyone could live longer than three days under the debris.

The four survivors pulled from the building on Saturday described their time trapped beneath the fallen structure. No other survivors have been recovered since then.

Thermal imaging gear from a Chinese team was deployed early this week to aid the search, and authorities said the equipment had identified two people under the wreckage.