A fire tore through a dormitory at a girls’ school in a town in Kenya’s Rift Valley overnight, killing at least 16 students, the government said on Thursday, May 28.
Outside the school, anxious family members waited for news of their missing loved ones. The fire ripped through a dormitory at the Utumishi Girls’ Academy Senior School, leaving dozens of students injured and some, tragically, without their lives.
Utumishi resident Leah Wanjiru said she was alerted to the fire after hearing children screaming. She said she and a neighbour fetched water to pour onto the fire until emergency services arrived.
Education Minister Julius Migos Ogamba said an investigation was under way to identify the deceased. He stated that the cause of the fire had not yet been identified.
Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen urged the public not to speculate while authorities worked to determine what had happened.
Fires are common at Kenyan schools, with more than 100 recorded in 2024, according to the government. Researchers have found that many fires are started by students protesting harsh discipline and poor conditions.
