Machakos Town Member of Parliament (MP) Caleb Mule has proposed the formation of a task force to tour all schools in Kenya and evaluate their safety standards following a series of tragic school fires.

Reacting to the recent Hillside Endarasha Academy fire in Kieni, Nyeri County, that claimed the lives of 17 pupils, the MP emphasised the urgent need for better security measures in schools.

Reference

MP Mule referenced past incidents, such as the Kyanguli tragedy, which took the lives of 67 boys, to stress the importance of inspecting schools and improving the safety of dormitories.

He highlighted the vulnerability of students in dormitory fires and called for structural changes to prevent future tragedies.

“Security for our students has deteriorated. In Nyeri, children were burnt in the dormitory. We’ve lost 17 children in Nyeri. A few years ago, we lost students in Kyanguli and others in Kakamega due to dormitory fires.

“As the MP for Machakos, I propose the establishment of a task force to inspect all schools and assess the security of our students. Dormitories should have windows through which students can escape in case of fire,” MP Mule said during an event in Machakos.

The fire at Hillside Endarasha Academy broke out in a dormitory housing over 150 boys aged 10 to 14. The wooden structure common in the region allowed the fire to spread rapidly.

Hillside Endarasha Academy is a private school with 824 students, located in Kenya’s central highlands, about 200 kilometres north of Nairobi.

Mourning period

In response to the tragedy, President William Ruto declared a three-day national mourning period. In a presidential proclamation, Ruto announced that the mourning would begin on Monday, September 9, and last until sunset on Wednesday, September 11, 2024.

He also directed that the Kenyan and East African Community flags be flown at half-mast across the country during this period.