Thousands gathered on Thursday in Nyeri town to mourn 21 children who tragically lost their lives in a recent boarding school fire. Rows of small white coffins, adorned with flowers and photos of the boys from Hillside Endarasha Academy, stood before grieving families and community members. The victims, mostly aged between 9 and 13, were trapped in their dormitory when the fire broke out earlier this month.
“This is one of the greatest national tragedies we’ve faced,” said opposition lawmaker Eugene Wamalwa, expressing the collective sorrow of the nation.
School fires have long plagued Kenya, with over 60 cases reported in 2018 alone. While the cause of the Hillside fire remains unknown, past incidents have often been linked to student protests over harsh disciplinary practices and inadequate living conditions.
A similar tragedy in 2017 claimed the lives of ten girls in Nairobi, where a student was later charged with manslaughter for arson. Maryanne Mwangi, whose 14-year-old daughter Virlear died in that fire, expressed deep frustration at the lack of change in school safety. “I didn’t want to believe it was happening again,” she said, recalling her heartbreak when she heard of the Endarasha fire.
Mwangi criticized the strict, almost militaristic rules in many Kenyan boarding schools, which she believes fuel student unrest and lead to arson. “Our schools are like military camps,” she added, calling for urgent reforms to prevent future tragedies.