A fire at a primary boarding school in central Kenya killed 17 students, a police spokeswoman said on Friday (6).
The country’s President William Ruto said he had asked authorities to investigate and hold those responsible accountable.
More rescue teams were on their way to Hillside Endarasha Academy in Nyeri, spokeswoman Resila Onyango said in a Kenyan radio broadcast, and authorities would provide details later.
“We lost 17 students in the fire incident while 14 were injured,” Onyango told Reuters by telephone. “Our team is currently on the scene.”
The fire burned the students beyond recognition, Citizen Television previously reported.
“I direct the relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate this horrific incident. Those responsible will be held accountable,” Ruto wrote in a post on his X-Ray account.
There have been a number of school fires in Kenya in recent years, many of which turned out to be arson.
Nine students died in September 2017 in a fire at a school in the capital, Nairobi, which the government blamed on criminal activity.
In 2001, 58 students were killed in a dormitory fire at Kyanguli Secondary School on the outskirts of Nairobi.
In 2012, eight students were killed at a school in Homa Bay County, western Kenya.
(With information from George Obulutsa and Humphrey Malalo)
This content was originally published in Fire at primary school in Kenya kills at least 17 children on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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