A fire tore through a dormitory at a girls’ boarding school in central Kenya, killing at least 16 students and injuring dozens more in one of the country’s deadliest school disasters in recent years. Kenyan authorities said the overnight blaze struck Utumishi Girls School in Gilgil, northwest of Nairobi, as students were asleep inside the dormitory.
Education Minister Julius Ogamba stated that 79 students were injured in the fire, with several suffering serious burns and other injuries sustained while trying to escape. Government officials confirmed that emergency response teams, police officers and the Kenyan Red Cross were deployed to the scene as rescue operations continued Thursday morning.
The school, which hosts more than 800 students, is managed by the Kenya Police Service and primarily serves children of police officers. Authorities said investigators were questioning surviving students and examining whether fire safety procedures were properly followed. The cause of the fire had not been officially established.
Questions Emerge Over Safety Conditions
Witness accounts and emergency responders described scenes of panic as students attempted to flee the burning building during the early morning hours.
Reuters reporting cited first responders who said some students jumped from windows after flames spread through the upper floor of the dormitory. Separate international coverage from The Guardian reported that survivors claimed some exits may have been locked as the fire intensified, though Kenyan authorities had not publicly confirmed those accounts.
Parents gathered outside the school seeking information about their children, with some confrontations reported between distressed families and security personnel. Associated Press reporting described emotional scenes as rescue workers recovered bodies from the damaged dormitory while injured students were transferred to nearby hospitals.
Kenyan President William Ruto expressed condolences to the victims’ families and said the government would support rescue, recovery and investigation efforts. Official statements described the fire as a national tragedy.
School Fires Remain Persistent Concern
The disaster has renewed concerns over boarding school safety in Kenya, where overcrowding, aging facilities and inadequate emergency preparedness have contributed to repeated fatal fires over the past two decades.
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International reporting noted that boarding schools remain common across Kenya, a legacy linked partly to colonial-era educational systems. Several major school fires in recent years have prompted repeated calls for stronger enforcement of fire safety regulations.
In 2024, at least 21 students died in a dormitory fire at Hillside Endarasha Academy in Nyeri County. Kenya’s deadliest known school fire occurred in 2001 at Kyanguli Secondary School, where 67 students were killed in an arson attack.
Authorities have not publicly confirmed whether the Gilgil fire resulted from an accident, negligence or deliberate action. Details regarding the identities of several victims also remained unclear as forensic and recovery operations continued.
