16 students killed and more than 70 injured after boarding school fire breaks out
Topics: World News, News
Jen Thomas
Featured Image Credit: SIMON MAINA / AFP via Getty Images
Topics: World News, News
More than 70 students were left injured, and 16 tragically died after a fire broke out at a boarding school in Kenya.
It happened in the middle of the night while the majority of people were sleeping, which is thought to have been why so many were injured.
The terrifying blaze started in a dormitory which housed around 220 students, in the early hours of Thursday, May 28.
According to People, the victims were sleeping a the Utumishi Girls Academy, which is located around 77 miles west of the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.
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Police and the Kenya Red Cross arrived at around 3.30am.
Kenya Red Cross shared a statement on Facebook which read: "Our first responders, E-Plus ambulance crew and our psychosocial support personnel are currently on the ground supporting affected students alongside other responders and relevant authorities.”
According to the BBC, the dormitory block had been engulfed in flames by the time help arrived.
Education Minister Julius Ogamba said 71 students had been discharged from hospital.
He added: "The response teams managed to put out the fire by about 03:00, but by then the damage had already been done," he said.
Police commander Masoud Mwinyi spoke outside the school to family members and press: "It is a sad and distressing situation."
Authorities are still looking for some students with the hope that they have survived, but had run away into the surrounding area driven by panic and shock.
"As we speak, our officers are combing the area because some students fled in shock and fear during the night," he said.
Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen, added: "It's a very anxious moment and even as we account for the 16 so far identified as having passed on, I want to ask the people of Kenya that together we stand with the families... in prayer, in support."
He urged: "I ask everyone to be patient and avoid speculation."
A local news outlet, The Star, said access to the school has been restricted apart from for family members looking for their loved ones.
One relative called Wambui Nderitu told the BBC: "When we arrived at the school we were told to queue."
"Most of us were so worried because we had heard some students had died and others were injured and in the hospital," he added.
Some students were badly injured when they jumped from high up in the building to attempt to escape.
"Some of those at the top floor had to jump out, that's why they are injured,” he said, before revealing he had located his cousin.
She was one of those injured after jumping, but she survived: "I found her… she is fine… but she has a broken leg.”
It is the latest in a series of deadly fires.
Back in 2001, 67 students in Machakos County died following another dormitory fire, while at least 21 people died in a separate dormitory fire in central Kenya in 2024.
At least one was arson, while the others were deemed accidental.
The cause of this week's fire has not yet been established.