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An open tank containing a mixture of water and oil extracted from trenches at the Kiboko oil spill site in 2019. [File, Standard]

One morning in March 2019, in a remote village in Kibwezi, Makueni County, about 160 kilometers from Nairobi, residents awoke to find their main source of water contaminated and smelling of fuel.

The water they relied on for daily use and farming was no longer usable, sending the entire village into a panic.

When the community traced the source of their troubles, they discovered it right in their neighborhood. A Sh48.4 billion pipeline had recorded its first major fault just eight months after its commissioning.

Environmental activists and experts quickly raised the alarm, urging the government and the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) to take immediate action to contain the spill and mitigate its impact. However, residents say the response was slow, and by then, many families had already been affected.

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