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Kiambu County Commissioner Henry Wafula confirmed these details. AMREF stated that it is cooperating fully with aviation authorities and emergency responders to determine the cause of the crash.
The Cessna Citation XLS had departed from Nairobi en route to Somaliland when it crashed in Mwihoko area, Kiambu County. Initial reports mistakenly identified the aircraft as a helicopter but later confirmed it was a fixed-wing Cessna jet.
Rescue efforts included firefighters working to extinguish burning wreckage lodged in residential structures. The crash site is in Githurai, an overcrowded suburb of Nairobi. Witnesses described the crash as sudden and violent, with one local resident hearing a loud bang followed by a “fireball” that engulfed part of the neighborhood.
The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) confirmed it had launched an investigation. Two people were injured and taken to nearby hospitals; their conditions have not been disclosed. Rescue and recovery operations concluded by Thursday evening, and authorities began the process of formally identifying the victims.
AMREF and KCAA are expected to release periodic updates as more facts emerge.
Henry Wafula, Kiambu County Commissioner, told reporters: “Four people on board were killed, and two others died inside a house struck by the aircraft.”
A local resident reported to Reuters: “I heard a loud sound, then saw a fireball and debris scattered over the neighborhood.”
