The Mombasa government is enforcing strict measures on businesses selling cooking gas to ensure public safety.
On Wednesday, the county government multi-agency team led by Governor Abdulswamad Nassir shut down five gas outlets.
The governor said companies that supply gas to outlets located within residential areas and other areas with high population should ensure that their clients have the required permits.
The four permits required for the gas business includes an Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority license, National Environmental Management Authority license, a single business permit and fire inspection certificate from the county government.
“We have already written to these companies that are dealing with this business and we are expecting them to abide by the law and realise that the right way for people to do business is not by endangering the lives of people. We need to be extremely careful. These are measures that are being taken not to harm, but to actually prevent any harm from happening,” he said.
Nassir said a multi-agency team will be carrying random checks in different areas.
He called upon residents to adhere to the rules, saying that from next week the subcounty administration together with the Department of Trade will be doing another round of public sensitisation on the importance of having a single business permit.
“But this time around the officers will do it differently. We will do what needs to be done to any outlets that are posing a danger to people. We are not going to relent on this,” the governor said.
“We will not be the county that has already seen the dangers of whatever is happening and then our role is just to sit down and let everything slide as if everything is okay. If people want to do business, let it be inspected,” he said.
Nassir said suppliers will be held responsible if they distribute gas to illegal outlets.
“It is better to take precautions now than waiting to start collecting dead bodies that are unrecognisable,” Nassir said.
Topister Juma, a human rights defender and resident of Mombasa, said that the people doing the gas business in their shops, along the roads and in market areas should be trained on safety measures to know what to do in case of an emergency.
“The other day an incident happened in Nairobi where people lost their lives and properties. We fear that this might happen in Mombasa because there are no proper mitigations. Today, everyone is selling cooking gas. We are not against it because it is a way of looking for income and improving the economy but we need proper ways of doing it,” she said.
Juma supported the move by the county government, saying they need to move around the communities and sensitise people on first aid in case of emergency.
“These people have not been trained and that is why we are so worried. We are also concerned over so many petrol stations opened in Mombasa,” Juma said.
“Today in Mombasa a house is designed in a way that a petrol station is put in front of the house or behind the house, yet there are so many children playing around the area.”
She called upon the county government to ensure that all the businesses are licensed, warning that no one was moving around to check whether gas cylinders were leaking or not.