Residents of Kahawa West in Nairobi were left in disarray after a seven-storey building collapsed on Sunday morning.

The building, which housed businesses and residential units, collapsed into rubble in mere seconds, videos captured the final moments before the crumble.

In the videos, several children are seen trying to scamper for safety as the building toppled down into a huge cloud of dust as other residents watched in concern.

Confirming the incident, the Kenya Red Cross said in a statement that several people were trapped inside the rubble. "A multi-agency response team is currently responding to a building collapse in Kahawa West, Nairobi County, where people are feared trapped," the statement read.

Preliminary reports indicate area residents were informed about a possible collapse in advance. The building, which was marked for demolition, did not affect other adjacent structures.

The office of the County Executive Built Environment also released a statement on Sunday, confirming that rescue teams had been deployed to evacuate residents from neighbouring buildings.

"The Nairobi City County Government confirms the collapse of a housing unit in Kahawa West area plot no. 233, along Station Road, Kahawa West. Currently, all Nairobi County Teams are fully engaged in disaster recovery and evacuating occupants from adjacent buildings," the statement read.

The latest incident came just months after a similar incident several kilometres away when a five-storey building collapsed in along Naivasha Road in Uthiru. The building, Epsom View Apartments, toppled to one side, leaving area residents in panic.