Angry August
August arrived like a matchbox left too close to the stove — fires again and again, roofs folding into orange, families running with what they could grab: a cooking pot, a folder of documents, a child’s school shoe in one hand.
Then another day broke badly for Sunday Studios area in Kibera — smoke thick enough to sting the eyes three alleys away, people standing in ash that still held warmth, wondering how many times one settlement can burn before the city looks up from its spreadsheets.
You learn the sound of panic here — not only screams, but the scrape of metal as someone drags a salvageable door away from heat, the hiss of water thrown from buckets that will never be enough.
We are not writing this to harvest pity. We are writing because loss here is material and immediate: mattresses, stock for small businesses, school fees saved in a tin — gone in minutes.
Long-term answers are not mysterious to people who live in Kibera. Slum upgrading — safer housing, wider paths, legal electricity — changes what catches fire and how fast help arrives. A fire station inside or beside the settlement would mean minutes, not desperate improvisation.
Until those bigger solutions land, neighbours still show up with buckets, with blankets, with whatever they can share. If you are reading this from a safer postcode, let anger August be a reason to support organisations that stand with families on day one — not only when the smoke makes the news.
Easter Feeding Program
Thanks to Tim Ruff and Stephanie, ETCO hosted a warm Easter Friday feeding program for children at our new office—bringing joy, a good meal, and community together in Kibera.
ETCO's Kibera Slums Tour
We thank Tim Ruff and Stephanie for joining ETCO’s Slum Tour in Kibera—walking with us, listening to residents, and experiencing the strength and reality of our community firsthand.
FLOOD SUPPORT APPEAL – KIBERA
Heavy rains brought flooding to Kibera’s riparian areas—destroying homes, claiming lives, and leaving families in urgent need. ETCO appeals to well-wishers for food, clothing, bedding, medical support, and other basics, while urging everyone to stay safe around fast water and contamination risks.