An important event in the development of Nairobi was the construction of the Kenyan railway, once known as the Lunatic Express.a By mid-1899, the 327 miles [530 km] of track stretching from the coastal city of Mombasa to Nairobi had been laid. By this time, the construction workers were smarting from their encounter with the famous “man eaters of Tsavo,” two lions that had killed many of the men’s colleagues, and the crew was facing the formidable terrain of the Great Rift Valley. Because the rail line was to penetrate farther into the interior, Mombasa, which had been the main depot, was no longer viewed as a viable location. Instead, in spite of its inhospitable appearance, Nairobi was deemed the best location for a resting-place for workers and an inland depot for construction materials. This helped make way for it later to become Kenya’s capital.