Fire engulfed a dormitory at St. Mary’s Girls Thigio Secondary School in Kiambu County on the night of Saturday, July 22, leaving over 90 students stranded.
Police and firefighters rushed to the institution to contain the fire while evacuating the students to safety.
Residents of Ndeiya, who raised alarm over the outbreak, also joined hands in putting out the fire thus preventing it from spreading to adjacent buildings.
Emergency service providers from the Kenya Airport Authority (KAA) were deployed to assist the county firefighters to salvage the situation.
Deputy County Commissioner of Ndeiya Sub-County, Stanley Mutua, noted that the fire gutted down a dormitory that accommodates over 90 students. He confirmed that there were no injuries or casualties reported although the fire razed down the students' belongings.
“There are some that were traumatised by the occurrence. We have called doctors who have administered first aid and also attended to those with asthma complications,” he stated.
Mutua added that two students were rushed to the hospital for specialised treatment. He noted that no parent was allowed to pick up the students from school until the administration gives them a green light.
“It’s not a must that parents should rush to pick up their students whenever there’s a fire for the sake of ensuring all students are safe and in good condition,” he stated.
As a precaution, the students were asked to remove their personal belongings from the dormitories as the administrators feared that the fire would spread to other neighbouring buildings.
The cause of the fire is yet to be established.
In a similar incident, Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa claimed that students of Kapsokwony High School in Mt. Elgon burnt down a building at the institution.
The lawmaker condemned the action noting, “We can’t burn down resources that we have spent (money) to build.”
