Parents agony as whereabouts of children unknown after school fire tragedy

Travis Kariuki, an orphan whose parents died when he was only three months old is among 46 pupils who can't be accounted for after the September 5 inferno at Hillside Endarasha Academy.

The 12-year-old pupil who was in Grade 7 enrolled in the school in pre-primary. His guardian, an uncle, is restless as he keeps visiting the institution seeking to get a response on the whereabouts of the pupil who only knows him as his father.

"His mother passed away after suffering from Leukemia while his father was reported dead the year that followed. He was found dead at his house in Nairobi. I took him as my son and took him to the best performing school in this area so that he can later in life fill the void left by his parents but here I'm, I have camped in this institution since Thursday night seeking answers of his whereabouts," Julius Kaburu the uncle to the pupil told The Standard at the school on Sunday.  

Kaburu's biggest worry is that his nephew remains unknown even though other pupils informed him that he was among those who managed to jump through the window.

"When I heard about the inferno I immediately rushed to school the same night and when I went to the room where the survivors were domiciled, his colleagues informed me that he managed to leave the dorm that caught fire, but I have not seen him to date," the distraught parent said.

Angeline Wambui's story mirrors that of Kaburu. Her son Robinson Theuri who was in Grade 6 has not been traced since the inferno.

While Wambui is at pains over why his son who has memorized her phone numbers has not called her and wonders which parent could still be accommodating a pupil whose parent is in distress, she still hopes that he will return home alive.

"I'm hopeful that my son will appear alive and unharmed. A survivor gave me the assurance of reuniting with my son after he confessed to having seen him escape and given a blanket to shield himself from the biting cold of Endarasha after jumping through the window," Wambui said.

However, she has neither eaten nor slept since Thursday. Fond memories of her son and fears of his whereabouts are causing her anguish.

"The government is giving us extremely scanty information on who could be hosting our children. This has left us to consume different narratives and theories that are being peddled in hush tones," she said.

"Some of the narratives being given are that the unaccounted for pupils are being counselled or are being interrogated by the detectives," the parent noted.

But despite the unconfirmed reports, the government has continued to hold on to the claim that there could be parents who picked children but have not returned them.

The government said 21 pupils have been confirmed dead while other figures remain speculative.

But the state's conflicting figures have only exacerbated the situation, a move parents claim has caused untold suffering.

Johnson Mukunya uncle to Roy Brandon Mugo 13 who is in Grade 7 disclosed that the mother has been in and out of hospital in what he believes is failure by government to disclose whether their son is alive or dead.

"They should just inform us whether all the unaccounted for children died in the ill-fated dormitory so that we may find closure and start preparing for the worst, DNA testing to start burial preparations. The situation is causing us unwarranted anxiety that may result in other ailments,” Mukunya explained.

Nahashon Nderitu uncle to Benard Warutere a 12 year old pupil who was at Grade 6 has camped at the school since Thursday since the pupil's mother has been adversely affected by the fire tragedy. 

Nderitu says the family is grappling with reports of 'disappearance of their son' but his parents are the hardest hit.

"His mother has not visited the school since the fire tragedy and has become a regular visitor at the hospital. Her condition is deteriorating by day and that is why as members of the family we are showing our solidarity to the school to support her," he added. 

John Mwangi, a father of two boys at Hillside said they have been camping at the school for the past two days with no information from the government or the authorities.

"We are living in agony, not knowing where our children are. The government needs to stop hiding information and tell us what happened to our children," he said

Mwangi, whose Grade 5 son is still missing, said he received a call from his son, who is in Grade 7. The elder son was using the phone of a parent who had come to pick up their child after they had managed to put out the fire at around 1 pm. Mwangi then drove from Embu to Nyeri.

"My son called me using his friend's parent phone. He informed me what had happened, and he told me he was still looking for his brother. I could not sleep, and I immediately started travelling to Nyeri. By 4 am on Friday, I was in the school compound," he said.

He said that for the two days he has been camping in the school, the government and authorities have provided scanty details, only stating that the cause of the fire is under investigation.

"Each hour that passes is torture, we need answers, and we need them now, we need to know if our kids are alive or the worse has happened," he said.

He added that despite promises of hourly updates from the government, parents are now running out of patience. “ We are not even in our right senses right now. As parents, we are in total darkness," he said.

Jgachane@standardmedia.co.ke