News
Eight Students Arrested In Kenya After Suspected Deadly School Arson Attack
Eight students alleged to have been involved in a suspected arson attack at a Kenyan girls’ school that killed 16 pupils have been arrested, police say.
The fire in the early hours of Thursday morning at the Utumishi Girls Academy in Gilgil, about 120km (77 miles) north-west of capital city Nairobi, tore through the upper floor of a dormitory which had 135 bunk beds.
After interviews with students and staff and a forensic review of CCTV footage, eight pupils at the school were identified as “persons of interest in connection with the planning and execution” of the fire, the National Police Service said in a statement.
Investigations are continuing into the exact cause of the blaze.
Police said the students were detained for questioning after being traced to their homes and brought back to the school, while others who had remained in the area were also tracked down and detained.
The eight were among 30 students who were initially traced and recalled back to the school by detectives investigating the deadly fire.
The fire started on the first floor of the dormitory
Kenya has had a long history of school fires – just two years ago at least 21 people died in a dormitory fire in central Kenya.
Many fires reported in boarding schools have been the result of arson, with disgruntled pupils – angry about the discipline and living conditions – accused of being responsible, while others were caused by accident.
Overcrowding in dormitories and the failure to follow safety guidelines, such as keeping exits clear and windows unlocked, have frequently been blamed for the high number of casualties.
Kenya Insights allows guest blogging, if you want to be published on Kenya’s most authoritative and accurate blog, have an expose, news TIPS, story angles, human interest stories, drop us an email on [email protected] or via Telegram
Wicknell Chivayo’s VIP Airport Access Raises Serious Questions Over Security Protocols at JKIA
UAE Bans Children Under 15 Years From Using Social Media
‘They Come At Night’: Gachagua Claims Ruto Insiders Secretly Supporting and Advising Him
Lawyer In High-Profile Ugandan Treason Case Charged With Related Offence
Sh2 Billion Time Bomb: Firm Allegedly Linked to Amason Kingi in Kilifi Revenue Deal Continues to Drain County Coffers as Senate Opens Probe
THE VULTURE AND THE SCHEME How Nairobi West Hospital Became the Most Dangerous Institution in Kenya’s SHA Ecosystem and Why the Books Must Be Audited Now
Mercy Wamoto’s Elgon Group Accused of Pocketing Piny Luo Festival Cash as Suppliers Go Unpaid
Ruto Invites Arsenal After Kenyan Fans Celebrate Title Win
The Banker Who Walked Away: How Yogesh Pattni Survived a Financial Crime Scandal That Shook Kenya
Ukraine Sets Moscow Refinery Ablaze In Biggest Attack In Years
Businessman Philip Waithaka Kinuthia’s Minor Son Allegedly Drove Drunk, Killed Two Peponi Students in Ngong Road Horror Crash as Claims of Cover-Up Intensify
Inside NCBA’s Decline: How a Banking Giant Lost Its Strategic Edge
Cement, Cash and Courts: How the Hashu Dynasty Crushed the Ramji Brothers for Fourteen Years and Why the Walls Are Now Closing In
Standard Chartered Ghosts Haunt Joshua Oigara At Stanbic As Whistleblower Spills Beans
Inside The Urban Planning Cartel That Owns Nairobi
South Sudan: Adut Salva Kiir’s Shadow Treasury Exposed
Why John Ngumi Is Running From the EACC and Why the Sh415 Million Payday May Be the Least of His Worries
How Adil Popat Saved His Empire On The Eve Of Imperial Bank Collapse and Why Kenya’s Mainstream Media Buried The Story
The President’s Daughter and The Missing Witness: How Adut Salva Kiir’s Shadow Treasury Silenced Its Most Dangerous Critic
Betika Faces DCI Probe, Directors Arrest and License Revocation Over Massive 29.5 Million Safaricom Customers’ Data Breach
-
News4 days agoBusinessman Philip Waithaka Kinuthia’s Minor Son Allegedly Drove Drunk, Killed Two Peponi Students in Ngong Road Horror Crash as Claims of Cover-Up Intensify
-
Business1 week agoInside NCBA’s Decline: How a Banking Giant Lost Its Strategic Edge
-
Business1 week agoStandard Chartered Ghosts Haunt Joshua Oigara At Stanbic As Whistleblower Spills Beans
-
Investigations2 weeks agoInside The Urban Planning Cartel That Owns Nairobi
-
Africa7 days agoSouth Sudan: Adut Salva Kiir’s Shadow Treasury Exposed
-
Business1 week agoWhy John Ngumi Is Running From the EACC and Why the Sh415 Million Payday May Be the Least of His Worries
-
Business7 days agoHow Adil Popat Saved His Empire On The Eve Of Imperial Bank Collapse and Why Kenya’s Mainstream Media Buried The Story
-
Africa1 week agoThe President’s Daughter and The Missing Witness: How Adut Salva Kiir’s Shadow Treasury Silenced Its Most Dangerous Critic