Kijabe Boys High School in Lari subcounty in Kiambu county was on Wednesday closed indefinitely after a fire destroyed a dormitory.
Lari subcounty police commander Adamson Furaha said three students have been arrested in connection with the Tuesday afternoon’s fire that destroyed the dormitory that hosts 96 students.
He said they arrested two more students with 30 rolls of bhang.
“So far, we have arrested three students in connection with the fire and two others with bhang. All five will be arraigned in court,” Furaha said.
Furaha said the three students who were arrested are locked up at Kijabe police station and will be arraigned in court on Thursday.
The police boss said some of the items destroyed in the fire included blankets, bedsheets, mattresses, uniforms, shoes and other personal effects.
Furaha said no one was injured during the incident.
He said the school administration decided to close the school until further notice after a meeting with the board of management.
The students noticed smoke billowing from the dormitory while they were eating lunch on Tuesday.
"The smoke was billowing from the dormitory and students started screaming for help. It was lunch hour and the students were in the dining hall," Furaha said
Furaha said they were called in and when they arrived, they found students, firefighters and surrounding community members trying to put out the blaze.
After the fire was put out, the affected students had to spend the night in the dining hall while others shared beds as they waited for instructions from the Ministry of Education and the school management.
He said investigations will continue to get more information regarding the cause of the fire.
The students were sitting the end of term two exams.
Kiambu County Parents Association chairman Samuel Wanjema said the Ministry of Education and the police have failed parents “since they do not conduct proper investigations into schools dormitory fires”.
"If they do proper investigations, why do these fires keep being witnessed? Parents have really suffered since they support the schools to rebuild them," he said.
Edited by A.N
