Two students killed, 11 injured in Stephjoy school fire

Two students have been confirmed dead while 11 others suffered injuries after fire razed down a dormitory at Stephjoy Boys’ High School at Ndeiya in Kiambu County Monday morning.

The 1am inferno is suspected to have been started by students.

The injured have been taken to Tigoni and Kenyatta National Hospitals for treatment.

Ten students have so far been arrested in connection with the fire.

The Director of Criminal Investigations Ndegwa Muhoro, who visited the school, said the students in police custody are assisting with investigations.

Muhoro further noted that poor planning was partly to blame for the fire saying contractors did not follow set regulations when constructing the dormitories.

“There was poor planning in the construction of the school dormitories. The set regulations were not adhered to during the construction work,” he said.

Muhoro said action will be taken against any person found to have started the fire.

The Director of Secondary and Tertiary education in the Ministry of Education Robert Masese said that investigations have been launched to establish the cause of the fire.

Masese said he met with stakeholders in the education sector last week to address the unrest in schools, especially in second term, and devise ways of dealing with the mater.

On his part, area MCA Nelson Munga said the will table a motion in the County Assembly of Kiambu to investigate the cause of the fire and bring to book those who approved the school plans.

He said that most dormitories in the county do not meet set standards thus posing safety concerns especially in times of fire.