A dawn fire on Friday, October 3, destroyed a dormitory at Malava Boys High School in Kakamega County, leaving nearly 200 students counting their losses and in the cold.
It is reported that the incident happened at around 5 am when most learners were already in class for morning studies. According to eyewitnesses, smoke and flames engulfed the 189-bed dormitory before any property could be salvaged.
Luckily, Firefighters from Kakamega County responded promptly and managed to put out the fire before it spread to nearby classrooms and dormitories.
Fortunately, no injuries were reported, though students’ personal belongings, including school uniforms, books, bedding, and other items, were completely destroyed.
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The School has not yet revealed the exact value of the loss.
Education officials and police visited the school shortly after the fire was contained. Authorities confirmed that investigations had been launched to determine the cause of the blaze.
At this stage, police have not ruled out foul play, given the recent rise in cases of unrest and fires in schools across the region.
The tragedy has left parents, teachers, and students in great shock as a call for safety measures and improved surveillance to prevent similar occurrence.
This fire comes at a time when several schools in Rift Valley and Western Kenya have reported similar incidents. Kericho and Bomet Counties being heavily hit by the wave of student unrests, education stakeholders led by the Ministry of Education have laid down strict guidelines to curb indiscipline cases in schools.
By Juma Ndigo
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