Sixteen students die for Kenya school fire

Kenya dey mourn as fire kpai sixteen students for one boarding school for Gilgil, wey dey about 120km (77 miles) west of di Kenyan capital, Nairobi, one policeman tell tori pipo for di scene.

Many oda students injure and dem take dem go hospital - dem later discharge 71 and seven still dey admitted for further treatment, Education Minister Julius Ogamba tok as e visit di scene of di fire.

Di fire for Utumishi Girls Academy start for di early hours of Thursday as di students bin de sleep.

Anxious parents and relatives don dey gada for di school dey wait for news of dia loved ones.

Police say search-and-rescue operations dey go on and authorities neva establish di cause of the fire.

Kenya Red Cross tok say emergency responders dey on ground to offer support.

"Na very sad and saddening situation," police commander Masoud Mwinyi tok, as e dey follow parents and crowds outside di school tok.

Kenya President Williams Ruto don express grief as e say, "No words fit truly ease di pain of losing young lives filled wit promise, hope, and dreams for di future. As a nation, we mourn wit di parents, guardians, teachers, and fellow students wey dey endure dis unimaginable tragedy."

Di education minister say di fire start for di first floor of one of di dormitories, wey don "burn finish" from di fire.

"Di response teams manage to quench di fire by about 03:00, but by den di damage don already happun," e tok.

E add say di school go begin release students to dia parents and guardians throughout di day as authorities continue investigations.

Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen, wey also dey among di officials wey gada for di school, send im condolences to di bereaved families.

"Na very anxious moment and even as we account for di 16 wey don die, I wan ask di pipo of Kenya say make we togeda stand wit di families... in prayer, in support.

"I ask everyone to dey patient and avoid speculation," e tok.

Fire outbreak dey common for Kenyan boarding schools, as several deadly incidents don dey reported in recent years.

Many don happun as a result of arson, as authorities don accuse students wey dey para about di about di discipline and living conditions - say na dem dey responsible, while na accident cause oda.

Dem dey often put di blame di on overcrowding plus failure to follow safety guidelines for di high number of casualties.

According to di police, di fire start around 01:00 local time (22:00 GMT Wednesday) and burn one dormitory block wey get about 220 students.

Mwinyi tok say some students bin run go nearby areas during di chaos and dem still dey try find dem.

"As we speak, our officers dem comb di area becos some students run in shock and fear during di night," e tok.

E add say investigations dey go on. Dem don put no go area for di school, na only parents dey allowed inside di compound.

Meanwhile, di Deputy Inspector General of Kenya Police Service Eliud Lagat don also land di school and e dey coordinate di rescue and recovery efforts.

E Say dem dey work to account for all students and support affected families during dis difficult time.

Di Directorate of Criminal Investigation Oga patapata Mohammed Amin also dey on on ground to oversee preliminary investigations into di cause of di fire.

Leah Serem, wey her daughter na final-year student for di school, tok say tori of di fire bin come as shock. She say she travel wit oda parents go di school from di Rift Valley town of Nakuru, about 40km away.

"We bin worry becos we no know weda our children dey alive," she tok, and add say plenty pipo dey sand wen dem land di compound.

Serem meet her daughter several hours later.

"I happy well-well, and I thank God," she tell tori pipo She say her daughter no know how di fire start, she also say students begin wake each oda up wen di hostel catch fire.

"We dey pray for parents wey neva see dia children... we want make Kenyans pray for us and remain calm as authorities investigate di cause of the fire," Serem tok.

Wambui Nderitu, wey im niece na student for di school, say family members wey come di scene dey met wit confusion and fear.

"Wen we land for di school, dem tell us to queue. Most of us bin dey so worried becos we hear say some students don die and odas injure and dey for hospital."

She say some students injure as dem jump from di upper floor of di dormitory as dem dey try escape.

"Some of dos wey dey di top floor gatz jump out, dat na why dem injure."

Nderitu say her niece survive di fire but don break leg. "I see my niece… she dey fine… but she don get broken leg," she tok.

Kenya get long history of school fires, di deadliest happun for 2001 wen 67 students die for Machakos county, south-east of di capital, afta some students set fire for inside one dormitory.

For 2024, at least 21 die for one dormitory fire for central Kenya.

For November 2021, di ministry of education issue response to one parliamentary committee wey bin reuest more information on school arson and reveal say dem record 126 of dat kain cases between January and November 2020.

Di Reuters news agency quotes research from 2018 wey say 60 cases of arson bin dey recorded for dat year.