A predawn fire tore through a dormitory at a girls’ boarding school in central Kenya on Thursday, killing 16 students and injuring dozens more as classmates scrambled to escape — some leaping from upper-floor windows to save themselves.

The blaze erupted around 1 a.m. local time at Utumishi Girls Academy in Gilgil, Nakuru County, about 74 miles northwest of Nairobi, while more than 800 students slept on campus. By the time officers arrived, the dormitory block — which housed about 220 students — was already engulfed in flames, according to reporting from the BBC. Firefighters managed to subdue the blaze by the early morning.

Education Minister Julius Ogamba confirmed the toll in a public statement on Thursday, May 28, 2026, calling it a “regrettable fire tragedy” and offering condolences to the families of the 16 who died. Seventy-nine students were injured in the chaos, though most have since been discharged from area hospitals.

The school is linked to the National Police Service, and most of its pupils are children of officers.

Frantic Escape From the Flames

The fire is believed to have started on the first floor of the dormitory while the students were asleep, police said. Some students on upper floors jumped from windows to escape the smoke and heat, sustaining broken bones and other injuries on impact. Others fled into the surrounding countryside in panic, prompting an extended search by officers in the hours after the blaze.

“As we speak, our officers are combing the area because some students fled in shock and fear during the night,” police commander Masoud Mwinyi told reporters at the scene.

The Kenya Red Cross said its first responders, an E-Plus ambulance crew and psychosocial support personnel deployed to the school in the early hours of the morning to assist students and coordinate with other agencies. Access to the campus was restricted throughout the day, with only parents permitted past the police line as the investigation began.

Parents Wait in Anguish

Outside the gates, families queued for hours waiting for word on their daughters. About 12 hours after the fire was extinguished, parents were still on the ground, some pleading with officers for any scrap of information.

“We trusted this school with our children. Right now we don’t even know who is alive,” one parent told the BBC.

Roselyn Rakamba rushed to the academy after a friend alerted her to the fire. On the way, her 14-year-old daughter reached her by phone to say she was safe. The relief, Rakamba said, was tempered by grief for those whose children had not survived. She described the school community as a family.

Wambui Nderitu arrived to look for her cousin and found her with a broken leg — one of the students who had jumped from an upper floor. “When we arrived at the school we were told to queue. Most of us were so worried because we had heard some students had died and others were injured and in the hospital,” Nderitu said. Her cousin had survived.

A Familiar Tragedy in Kenya

The disaster at Utumishi follows a grim and recurring pattern. Kenya’s deadliest school fire occurred on the night of March 25, 2001, when two 16-year-old students set a dormitory alight at Kyanguli Secondary School in Machakos County, killing 67 boys — a crime attributed to student grievances over fee arrears and cancelled exam results. No one was ever convicted.

More recently, on September 5, 2024, a fire tore through a dormitory housing 156 boys at Hillside Endarasha Academy in Nyeri County, killing 21 pupils aged between 10 and 14.

Government data shows more than 100 school fires occurred across Kenya in 2024 alone. Investigators have repeatedly traced the high death tolls to the same structural failings: overcrowded dormitories, grilled windows that prevent escape, single exits and doors that open inward rather than outward — conditions the Ministry of Education identified in a 2024 review but has struggled to fully address.

Investigators have attributed past fires to a mix of arson — often blamed on disgruntled students protesting discipline or living conditions — and accidental causes.

A 2024 assessment by the Ministry of Education found that many school dormitories still featured grills on windows and inward-opening doors, conditions that can trap students inside during emergencies. Following that review, the ministry shuttered 348 schools that failed to meet safety standards, according to a report citing the education ministry.

Investigation Underway

The cause of Thursday’s fire remained unknown late in the day. Ogamba said investigators would provide updates as the inquiry progressed and urged the public to refrain from speculation. Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen also addressed the nation, asking Kenyans to stand with the bereaved families in prayer.

Mwinyi, the police commander, summed up the mood at the scene as parents continued to file past the gates in search of news. “It is a sad and distressing situation,” he said.

Search-and-rescue teams continued their work into the evening, accounting for students who had scattered during the panic. Officials had not yet released the names of the dead, pending notification of families.