Tension is high Changamwe after the government ordered residents to vacate petroleum pipeline wayleave in the area following safety concerns.

Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) is accusing 473 families of encroaching on the wayleave exposing themselves to the danger of pipelines transporting fuel, including one with super petrol.

KPC officials said some residents were cooking and others doing welding on the pipeline pathway, which could spark an explosion in case of a leak from the buried pipes.

The encroached areas are in Changamwe, Kipevu, and Chaani wards, and most of the locals living in the affected houses are tenants.