A fire broke out in a dormitory at a boarding school in Kenya, resulting in 16 student deaths and dozens more injured. Most of the injured have already been discharged from hospitals.
Foreign news agencies reported on Thursday, 28 May 2026, that a fire occurred at Utumishi Girls' School in Gilgil, located about 120 kilometers northwest of Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, causing 16 student fatalities.
Julius Okombo, the Minister of Education, said during a site visit that dozens more students were injured and taken to hospital. Among them, 71 have been cleared by doctors to go home, while 7 remain hospitalized for further care.
Okombo added that the cause of the fire has not yet been determined and that investigations are ongoing.
The incident occurred at a boarding school, with the fire starting around 1:00 a.m. local time on Thursday while students were asleep. Anxious parents and relatives gathered at the scene waiting for news about their loved ones.
Police reports indicate that the fire began on the first floor of a dormitory housing about 220 students. At the time of the tragedy, more than 800 students were present at the school.
"The disaster response team managed to control the fire by around 3:00 a.m., but by then the losses had already occurred," Okombo said. He added that the school would begin gradually releasing students back to their families throughout the day while investigations continue.
Police also revealed that officers are still searching for some students who fled the fire, running into nearby areas amid the chaos and have since gone missing.
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Source:bbc