Nairobi, Sep 12 (IANS) More than 100 people were killed Monday in a fire in a fuel pipeline passing through a slum area in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, a media report quoted the police as saying.


Earlier reports said dozens of Kenyans were injured after an underground oil pipeline burst and spilled oil into a slum near a fuel depot in Nairobi's Industrial Area, reported Xinhua.

A Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) official said an explosion occurred when some of the slum residents rushed to scoop the spilled oil while smoking.

"One of our pipelines burst near the fuel depot off Kunga Lunga Road in the Industrial Area, causing an oil spill which went undetected for hours. It exploded when residents who were smoking rushed to collect the oil causing injuries," the official told Xinhua.

The official declined to confirm the number of dead.