Gilgil, May 28: As many as 17 students were killed and nearly 78 others injured after a massive overnight fire broke out in the dormitories of a girls’ boarding school in central Kenya, officials said Thursday.

The tragic incident occurred at Utumishi Girls School in Gilgil, around 120 kilometres from the capital Nairobi. The government-owned secondary school, which has more than 800 students, is sponsored and managed by the Kenya Police Service, with many students being daughters of police personnel.

Confirming the incident, Kenya’s Education Minister Julius Ogamba said authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the fire and whether the school had properly implemented mandatory fire safety measures.

“The cause of the fire has not yet been established. Investigations will determine whether the school’s fire safety manual had been adhered to,” Ogamba said.

Police said rescue and emergency response operations were immediately launched after the blaze erupted in the dormitory section late Wednesday night.

Eyewitnesses at the scene alleged there was confusion during the evacuation process. One local resident, Wambui Nderitu, claimed the hostel matron opened only one of the two dormitory exits.

“The second door remained closed. Even though my cousin escaped with a leg injury, we’ve been told many children are injured and some died,” she alleged.

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The injured students were shifted to nearby hospitals for treatment, with several reported to be in serious condition.

School fires have repeatedly raised safety concerns in Kenya’s boarding schools over the years. Authorities have previously linked some incidents to electrical faults and others to deliberate arson.

Kenya witnessed one of its deadliest school fire tragedies in 2001 when 67 students died in a dormitory fire in Machakos County.

More recently, in 2024, 21 students were killed in another school fire in central Kenya, prompting President William Ruto to declare three days of national mourning.

In 2017, 10 students died in a dormitory fire at a school in Nairobi, following which a student was charged with murder.