Three men died after suffocating while unblocking a septic tunnel along in Riruta, Lenana Road in Nairobi.
Police and locals said the incident happened on Monday evening as the three were on duty.
The victims were identified as Gideon Muchira, 40, George Krony, 30, and Moses Githure, 45.
Nairobi police boss Issa Mohamud said the three were carrying out work to unblock the septic tunnel when they became trapped and suffocated.
Members of the public, assisted by an ambulance rescue team, pulled the men from the tunnel and rushed them to Kenyatta National Hospital.
However, they succumbed to their injuries while undergoing treatment.
Police officers visited the scene, while the bodies were later moved to Kenyatta Farewell Home, where they are awaiting post-mortem examinations.
Authorities are investigating the incident, including the circumstances surrounding the work and whether adequate safety measures were in place.
Officials from the County Government and National Construction Authority visited the scene as part of ongoing investigations.
Elsewhere, a 68-year-old man died after a fire believed to have started from a newly purchased cooking gas cylinder engulfed his home in Thika West Sub-County, Kiambu County.
According to police, the incident occurred in the Kisii kwa Maasai area when Joseph Njuguna Mwangi was connecting a newly bought 13-kilogramme gas cylinder to a cooker.
Police said the cylinder caught fire, and the flames spread rapidly through the three-bedroom house. Mwangi reportedly attempted to extinguish the blaze but was overwhelmed.
His wife and their son escaped to a bedroom, opened the windows and screamed for help. Neighbours responded and rescued the two, but Mwangi was found unconscious on the sitting room floor.
He was rushed to Thika Sam’s Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Police believe he died from suspected smoke inhalation.
The woman sustained minor burns on her right elbow and right thigh and was treated at the same hospital, where she was reported to be in stable condition.
Police officers visited the scene and confirmed that the fire originated from the gas cylinder inside the house.
The blaze, which destroyed the three-bedroom house and its contents, was extinguished by members of the public at about 8:45 p.m.
The value of the property destroyed has not yet been established.
The body was moved to General Kago Hospital Mortuary pending a post-mortem examination as investigations continue.
