Bishop Ndingi High School dormitory in Machakos county has been razed in dawn fire.
Property of unknown value was destroyed after the dormitory went up in flames following the fire that broke out in the institution early Tuesday.
No casualties were reported during the incident since it occurred while students were in class for their morning studies.
The mixed–day boarding, is a public school located near Mwala Town in Mwala subcounty.
It's a county-level secondary school with approximately 287 students.
Mwala deputy county commissioner David Tegutwa said the
fire incident affected 150 students.
“Students were in morning preps when they noted that there was fire consuming one of their dormitories, named Ngotho, early this morning. There were no casualties in the incident since all the 150 students usually accommodated in the dormitory were in their respective classrooms for the morning preps,” Tegutwa said.
Tegutwa spoke to the Star on phone hours after the incident occurred.
He said the dormitory was extensively damaged following the incident. No students’ properties were salvaged.
“We responded to the incident but found the fire had extensively spread. The whole dormitory was razed. It was badly damaged,” Tegutwa said.
The administrator said the fire didn’t spread to other structures within the school compound, though, since the dormitory is an isolated area.
The students’ belongings included bedding, clothing, foodstuff, stationery, and utensils.
Tegutwa said the fire brigade from the County Government of Machakos responded to the incident and contained the fire.
He said the cause of the fire was not immediately established.
“The students have since remained in class with lessons ongoing, though with lots of anxiety. They are waiting for area security officials, the school’s BOM, among other relevant stakeholders, to meet and chart a way forward,” Tegutwa said.
Tegutwa said as Mwala subcounty security officials, they had
been and would continue engaging school heads and student councils in the area
to boost performance and pre-empt unrest.
