Rescue teams searching the rubble of the collapsed Eastleigh building are still trying to establish who remains missing, as police and the Kenya Red Cross work to trace people reported unaccounted for.

Phone tracing is among the methods being used to help locate those whose whereabouts remain unknown. But the exercise is complicated by incomplete contact details, inactive phones and uncertainty over whether some people were inside the building when it fell.

The number of people reported missing has changed since the collapse on Friday, 23 October. The Kenya Red Cross had recorded 31 missing-person cases on 24 October, while later reports put the figure at 45 to 47. The totals reflect different updates as tracing continues, rather than a settled count of people confirmed to be trapped beneath the debris. 

Phone tracing helps, but does not settle the count

Nairobi North Regional County Commissioner Simon Osumba said authorities were working with a mobile service provider to trace phone signals linked to people reported missing.

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However, the exercise has not been straightforward. Some phones are switched off or have not been used for a long time. Others may have been left behind when workers and occupants fled as the building began to collapse.

Officials have also struggled to identify some casual workers because the details provided were incomplete. In the account supplied by authorities, 11 workers were particularly difficult to trace because they had given only one name and no telephone number.

Osumba urged the public to give rescue teams time to work safely, particularly as they search sections believed to contain people who may still be trapped.

The use of phone signals can help investigators follow up leads, but it cannot by itself establish whether someone is beneath the rubble. Responders must also check reports with families, contact people who may have left the site and confirm identities before updating the missing-person count.

Red Cross works to reunite families

The Kenya Red Cross has set up a tracing desk at the scene to receive reports from relatives and help establish the whereabouts of missing people.

The agency said on 24 October that it was contacting families to verify the 31 cases reported to its desk. It noted that some workers might have returned home after the collapse without informing their relatives, while confusion and distress had made it harder for others to provide accurate information. 

Families seeking information about missing relatives have been directed to the Red Cross desk at the site or to its emergency response number, 1199. Police have also urged members of the public to keep away from the affected area to allow rescue teams clear access. Search continues beneath the rubble

The multi-storey building under construction collapsed along 9th Street in Eastleigh on 23 October. Shops on the ground floor and in the basement were reportedly occupied when the structure came down, raising fears that traders, customers and other occupants could have been caught inside. 

The rescue operation has involved several agencies, including the National Police Service, Kenya Defence Forces, Nairobi City County teams and the Kenya Red Cross. The search has focused on reaching areas where survivors might remain trapped, while responders work around unstable debris.

As the operation continues, the difference between people reported missing and those confirmed to be trapped remains crucial. Until tracing and rescue teams reconcile the reports, the number of people still beneath the wreckage cannot be established from the missing-person figures alone.

For families waiting for news, the priority remains finding their loved ones and receiving reliable information. For investigators, the task is to account for every report while determining what happened when the building collapsed.