Kindiki urges parents to help locate missing pupils after tragic Nyeri school fire

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has called on parents and residents near Hillside Endarasha Academy in Nyeri County to help locate and return students who fled the school following a tragic dormitory fire that claimed the lives of 17 pupils.

The Thursday night fire left 14 others seriously injured, and some of the missing students are believed to be in the homes of nearby residents.

Addressing the media from the school, Kindiki urged anyone hosting the students to return them to the school, stressing the importance of accounting for all the children and providing them with the counselling and care they need after the traumatic experience.

"I can confirm that a number of the pupils ran into neighbouring homes, and they need help and counselling. Our appeal is to anybody who could be harbouring a child to bring them for accountability," Kindiki said.

The CS also directed parents who have picked up their children to report to the command and logistics centre set up at the school to aid in tracking the students.

Returning the learners to school will help in the contact tracing exercise," Kindiki explained, adding that reconciling the number of missing and found children is crucial to the ongoing operations.

The CS also addressed the ongoing investigation into the cause of the deadly fire. He noted that forensic experts are at the scene gathering evidence to determine what led to the blaze.

"At this juncture, we cannot provide all the information the public is seeking... But we assure you that forensic information is being collected, and we will get to the bottom of it. If anybody was culpable, they will be held to account," he noted.

Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) have been deployed from Nairobi to assist in piecing together the events leading up to the fire.

ENDARASHA, NYERI COUNTY, KENYA
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2024

This morning, Kenya woke up to the devastating news of the tragic loss and severe injury on lovely children of Kieni Hillside Academy in Nyeri County as a result of a terrible pre-dawn fire which razed down their… pic.twitter.com/HwwTL6mDlZ

— Kithure Kindiki (@KindikiKithure) September 6, 2024

President William Ruto directed relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate the tragic fire incident as he described the incident as 'horrific'.

"This is devastating news. I instruct relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate this horrific incident," he said, adding that those responsible will be held to account.

In addition, CS Kindiki emphasised the government's commitment to ensuring full accountability if any individual's actions or negligence contributed to the tragedy.

"We want to assure the public that if any action or inaction by anyone may have contributed to this tragedy, those found responsible will be held accountable," he said.

Despite the Interior boss noting that the government may not be able to give conclusive information at that moment, they have agreed on a structured way of communication to ensure transparent and accurate updates.

While urging parents and guardians to be patient, Kindiki reassured the affected families and the school that the Ministry of Education will provide support to help the institution recover from the incident.

He commended the school's administration for working closely with security agencies throughout the investigation.

According to the Ministry of Education, Hillside Endarasha Academy has a total of 824 pupils; 402 are boys while 422 are girls.

Basic Education PS Belio Kipsang revealed that of the total enrolment of 824 learners, 156 boys and 160 girls are boarders while the rest are day scholars.

In terms of ongoing interventions, Chief of Staff Felix Koskei noted that various items were being dispatched at the institution.

They include 50 bags of rice, 50 bags of beans, 100 mattresses and 100 blankets.

"The Ministry of Health and the County Government Health Department are on-site assessing medical needs. The Pankaj Foundation has donated 50 first aid kits and MP Shah Hospital is also sending medical consumables," Koskei noted.