NAIROBI - Kenyan authorities have ordered an investigation into the stampede which left seven people dead at a football stadium in the capital Nairobi.
The crush happened as a crowd tried to enter Nyayo National Stadium to watch a match between two of Kenya's most popular teams.
Six people died at the stadium, while another person died later in hospital, a Kenyan Red Cross official said.
Prime Minister Raila Odinga sent a message of condolence to relatives and friends of the seven soccer fans who were trampled to death onSaturday.
He regretted the tragic incident but appealed for calm when he visited and consoled the casualties of the stadium chaos at Kenyatta National Hospital on Saturday.
Odinga, who rushed to the hospital immediately after learning of the stampede, assured the injured fans that the government would facilitate their treatment.
The premier said a comprehensive audit of the circumstances under which the stampede occurred would be conducted to help in mapping out measures to avert a recurrence of similar disasters in future.
Jack Oguda, head of the Kenya Premier League, said an inquiry would be launched to establish why fans could not access the stadium, which he said was not full.
"A gate was broken by fans forcing their way into the stadium," AP news agency quoted Oguda as saying. "Access was limited and they got agitated, and that's why they forced their way in."
An eyewitness, Victor Opiyo, said he found "people lying on each other like charcoal, some under metal bars pressed so hard. Women, children and even big men, were there dying".
The game was stopped for a few minutes. The decision not to cancel the match was possibly made to avoid more ugly scenes in a stadium filled with tens of thousands of fired-up supporters.
A stampede at the same stadium in 2005 killed one fan, leading Fifa to temporarily ban its use in the World Cup qualifiers.
Latest stampedes in Africa
- June 2010: 16 injured outside Johannesburg's Makhulong Stadium during Nigeria vs South Korea World Cup warm-up game.
- March 2009: 19 die at Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
- September 2008: 13 killed in Butembo, Democratic Republic of Congo
Probe into stampede under way
NAIROBI - Kenyan authorities have ordered an investigation into the stampede which left seven people dead at a football stadium in the capital Nairobi.
The crush happened as a crowd tried to enter Nyayo National Stadium to watch a match between two of Kenya's most popular teams.
Six people died at the stadium, while another person died later in hospital, a Kenyan Red Cross official said.
Prime Minister Raila Odinga sent a message of condolence to relatives and friends of the seven soccer fans who were trampled to death onSaturday.
He regretted the tragic incident but appealed for calm when he visited and consoled the casualties of the stadium chaos at Kenyatta National Hospital on Saturday.
Odinga, who rushed to the hospital immediately after learning of the stampede, assured the injured fans that the government would facilitate their treatment.
The premier said a comprehensive audit of the circumstances under which the stampede occurred would be conducted to help in mapping out measures to avert a recurrence of similar disasters in future.
Jack Oguda, head of the Kenya Premier League, said an inquiry would be launched to establish why fans could not access the stadium, which he said was not full.
"A gate was broken by fans forcing their way into the stadium," AP news agency quoted Oguda as saying. "Access was limited and they got agitated, and that's why they forced their way in."
An eyewitness, Victor Opiyo, said he found "people lying on each other like charcoal, some under metal bars pressed so hard. Women, children and even big men, were there dying".
The game was stopped for a few minutes. The decision not to cancel the match was possibly made to avoid more ugly scenes in a stadium filled with tens of thousands of fired-up supporters.
A stampede at the same stadium in 2005 killed one fan, leading Fifa to temporarily ban its use in the World Cup qualifiers.
Latest stampedes in Africa
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