Stephjoy school parent recounts last moment with son

The Monday morning fire tragedy at Stephjoy Boy’s High School claimed the lives of three students leaving eleven others injured.

Zekariah Njoroge, 17, was one of those who perished in the fire whose cause is still under investigation by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).

According to Joseph Gitau, the father of the deceased, the decision to admit his son at Stephjoy Boys High School was motivated by his desire to attain good grades and pursue an engineering course in higher education.

“I transferred my son to the school last term because he wanted a school that will help him get better grades and enable him pursue his dreams of becoming an engineer,” said Gitau.

The student’s last word to his father indicated that his life could have been saved had the dormitory door not been locked from outside.

“He said that the fire began in Dormitory 8. They saw smoke entering their dormitory but their efforts to escape were hampered by the locked doors,” he said.

“Before he died, he asked if he had serious burns but I told him he wasn’t seriously hurt.”

Zechariah was taken to Kenyatta National Hospital for treatment owing to the seriousness of his injuries but succumbed a few minutes past seven on Monday night

“I thank God that we were able to speak with Njoroge before his death because that is want I had hoped for.”

Zekariah’s family is now trying to secure permission to move their son from City Mortuary to Nakuru where they live as they embark on funeral arrangements.

Eleven students have so far been arraigned in connection in connection to the incident.

In a case presided over by Senior Principal Magistrate Godfrey Oduor, the students were not allowed to take a plea and were remanded until Friday when the hearing will resume.