Fire at girls school in Kenya kills unknown number of people, police say

Gilgil, Kenya — A fire at a school for girls in central Kenya has caused an unknown number of deaths, according to police, who said search teams have been deployed.

The Reuters news service reported that police said some 15 students were killed. French news agency AFP cits local reports as saying dozens of girls were hospitalized.

Reuters said broadcaster Citizen Television quoted county police official Masoud Mwinyi as telling distraught parents outside the school it is a “distressing and saddening situation.”

Authorities were trying to account for all the students at Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area.

The fire broke out early Thursday morning in the boarding school’s accommodation section. The cause hasn’t been determined.

School fires are common in Kenyan boarding schools, with some caused by arson and others by electrical faults.

Kenya’s deadliest recent school fire occurred in 2001 when 67 students died in a dormitory fire in Machakos County.

In 2024, 21 students burned to death in a school fire in central Kenya. President William Ruto declared three days of mourning.

In 2017, 10 students died in a school fire in the capital Nairobi. A student was charged with murder.