Form three girl dies after school toilet collapses on her

A form three student at Muisuni girls has died after a school toilet collapsed on her.

The incident left another student injured who is recuperating at the Machakos level 5 hospital.

While confirming the incident, Kangundo police boss Benjamin Ong'ombe said the pit latrines collapsed on Sunday evening due to heavy rains in the area.

Ongómbe said the 17 year old girl was among a group of other girls who had  gone to relieve themselves before the latrine sank in the ground.

Rescuers from Machakos County Emergency Services department were forced to pull down the entire toilet block in order to rescue the students who were trapped.

The deceased’s body was removed to Kangundo hospital mortuary.

Ongómbe  cautioned school principles to inspect their latrines properly to check it there are cracks or if they are strong enough to avoid this kind of accidents.

This is barely a month after another school collapsed in Nairobi killing 8 pupils.

The incident at the Precious Talent Academy exposed laxity of safety measures for learners in most institutions.

This saw the government order closure of all unregistered schools offering basic education in the country.

Through the Ministry of Education, the state said some of the schools in the country have been established without following a due process with some operating without licenses.

In a circular signed by Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang, the ministry also directed closure to all registered schools but grappling with  deteriorating infrastructure.

Deputy President William Ruto  defended the  move saying the government is focused on making all schools in the country habitable for learners.

He noted that the move to close unregistered schools and those whose infrastructure is in bad shape aims at ensuring that classrooms are conducive for learning.

“Schools are powerful knowledge incubation centres. The skills acquired by learners are a bedrock for the transformation agenda of our country,” he said.