Two hotels in Mombasa, Kenya, have suffered a loss of Ksh60m ($600,000) after a fire ravaged apartments, restaurants and bars on the seafront.

No hotel guests or staff were injured in the fire which broke out at Indiana Beach Apartment Hotel in Bamburi last Friday before it spread to the nearby Ziwani Beach Resort. According to Indiana Beach Apartment Hotel Financial Controller, Abdul Bachani, the fire broke out shortly after 19h00 at the hotel’s restaurant, the Beach Hut.

He said the restaurant’s roof caught alight, fanned by strong winds from the sea, and the blaze quickly spread to the bar and the kitchen.

“The fire gutted the fully equipped and well-stocked restaurant, bar and kitchen, causing us a loss of Ksh30m ($300,000),” said Bachani.

The hotel and apartments had 60% occupancy at the time of the fire.

He said guests were continuing with their holiday as the accommodation facilities had not been affected. The hotel will use an alternative restaurant that was not affected by the blaze.

Six apartments at Ziwani Beach Resort were destroyed in the inferno, while four others were partially burnt.

The hotel’s restaurant, bar, kitchen and stores also went up in flames.

“We suffered a facility and equipment loss of Ksh30m ($300,000). When the fire occurred, we had 16 guests, but nobody was hurt,” said a hotel director, who did not want to be named.

Some guests, he added, had decided to remain in the unaffected apartments while others were taken to other hotels in Mombasa.

Bamburi Beach Hotel General Manager, Charles Ibukah, said the hotel was not affected by the blaze. “Only decorations on top of the roofs of our four rooms were damaged by the fire. We suffered a loss of Ksh200,000 ($2 000),” he explained.

Ibukah added that during the incident, the hotel had more than 200 local and international guests.

“Our hotel had 70% occupancy with 40% international guests while the rest were locals. Nobody was hurt,” he said.