Two children were burned beyond recognition on Sunday when a plot of five houses caught fire in Kiamaina village, on the outskirts of Nyahururu town in the Laikipia West Constituency.

According to reports, the two minors, aged two and four, were in their home when their mother, Ms. Susan Muthoni, was preparing lunch for her family when a fire broke out.

Though the cause of the fire was not immediately determined, neighbours reported that it began in one of the houses where the two children were and spread quickly to the other houses.

Roobert Maina and other residents noted that efforts to extinguish the fire in an attempt to save the deceased were futile, and they complained that Nyahururu firefighters took too long to respond to their distress calls.

Angry residents have accused the county firefighter of taking too long to respond, arriving hours after the fire had been extinguished.

They are now requesting that the County government install fire engines within the estate within seven days, citing the fact that fires have been common in the area and that one fire engine is desperately needed.