"Why me, God?" Grief engulfs parents after losing children in Utumishi school fire tragedy

She had spent hours searching for her daughter, unsure whether she was among students admitted to the hospital or those who had perished in the dormitory fire at Utumishi Girls Academy in Gilgil, Nakuru County, on Thursday.

Her worst fears were confirmed at a Kenya Red Cross Society information desk, where parents had gathered to check the status of their children.

The emotional mother of four, whom The Standard could not immediately identify, had been informed that her daughter, who was in Form Four, had died in the fire.

The mother wailed. The loss of her daughter came after she recently buried another child who died of heart failure, leaving her with only two boys.

“My God, why is this happening to me? Why me, God? Why me? I just lost another child and now this one,” she said amid sobs, after receiving the devastating news.

In another corner, a parent broke down after confirming at the information desk that her daughter who was in Form Three, had also died. She wailed uncontrollably as other parents comforted her.

The parents were among hundreds of those who rushed to the school after they received news of the fire tragedy.

Within the school compound, some parents wandered in confusion after failing to locate their children, while others attended to their daughters who sustained injuries.

Some parents who managed to trace their children either within the school compound or in nearby hospitals quietly left with them, relieved by their safety but shaken. But for many others, however, the ordeal dragged on.

More than 15 hours later, tens of parents remained stranded within the school compound, frustrated and desperate for answers, unsure whether their children were among those admitted to hospitals or those who perished in the inferno.

The school administration had yet to provide a clear account of the affected students or details of those taken to various hospitals, deepening the anxiety and uncertainty.

Groups of parents camped at different points within the compound. Some gathered near the dormitory where bodies were still being held, clinging to hope yet fearing the worst. Others lingered outside the administration block, demanding information, their faces marked by exhaustion, confusion and grief.

As the long hours stretched on, tears, prayers and frantic phone calls filled the air with many parents overcome by emotion, unable to come to terms with the uncertainty surrounding their children’s fate.

The fire that broke out at about midnight on Thursday killed 16 children and left over 79 injured.

The lead pathologist Dr Titus Ngulungu said they have been combing through the entire dormitory and they have managed to identify 16 bodies but the search will continue on Friday.

“All of them will be subjected to DNA tests so that they can positively identify them against their kin. Some of them are burnt and could not be identified,” said Ngulungu, adding that they had called off the search until Tuesday.

The bodies were taken to Naivasha Hospital Mortuary.

Police said that 79 students who sustained injuries were taken to different hospitals. They noted that 71 were treated and discharged, one was taken by her parents and seven were airlifted to Nairobi for further treatment.

The parent whose child was among those questioned over the incident said the fire started at around midnight.

She told The Standard that her daughter had heard murmurs and unusual commotion in the dormitory moments before the fire broke out.

“She told me there was an occupied bed next to hers because the student who normally sleeps there was absent due to illness. Shortly after, they saw flames and heard some girls who they suspected were responsible, shouting that there was a fire,” the parent said.

The girl managed to escape through the window, though several students who jumped sustained injuries, including fractures to their legs.

“She told us that immediately after she jumped out, she heard an explosion. They struggled to get out. One of them jumped with her hair and clothes already on fire,” the parent said.

Some children told their parents that the school administrators had allegedly received intelligence from the some students that a group of students were planning to lead a strike.

“I think the administration didn’t act on that information because I hear the same day they were to strike is when the dormitory was burnt. They could have sent them home the moment they heard about the planned strike. We wouldn’t talking about such kind of loss,” claimed the parent who sought anonymity to protect her child from victimisation.

Already, at least four girls from different classes who are suspected to have burnt the dormitory were questioned by investigators and school administrators.

There are claims that local residents who heard screams from the school and rushed to help were blocked by police officers from accessing the premises.

A local resident told The Standard that they first heard screams from the school but they were barred from going to rescue even before the firefighters could arrive.

“We were among the first people who responded after we heard screams from the school, then we saw fire. We rushed but we were blocked from accessing the school by the security guards. We had to jump over the gate to rescue the children,” said a neighbor who didn’t want to be named.

“The door was locked from outside, and the children who were sleeping in the underground dormitory were struggling to exit through the doors. We tried to break the windows and the girls and i managed to rescue many children,” he said.

Unfortunately, the rescuer's younger sister, who was in the same school, was among those who were killed in the inferno.

“We were saving others but I didn’t know my sister was among those who died. She was in Form Three. It’s so sad but we managed to rescue many of them,” he added.

Residents said they placed mattresses on the ground to cushion students who were jumping from the windows to escape the flames.

Each dormitory housed more than 200 students. The affected dormitory had three levels; the basement, ground floor and first floor.

The fire is reported to have started on the top floor before rapidly spreading to the lower levels. Some students who were sleeping in the basement were trapped as they attempted to escape through the ground floor and upper exits.

One student recounted that a group of learners ran to what they believed was a safe corner, but unfortunately, they may not have made it out alive.

Eunice, a parent whose daughter was injured while trying to save other students, told The Standard that parents began receiving calls from the school at around 3am.

“I was called by a fellow parent informing me about the incident. I was shocked at first because I couldn’t trace my daughter in school. But I was later told she was in hospital after suffering minor injuries. She was treated and discharged,” she said.

“My daughter told me the fire started on the second floor before spreading to the lower floor. She and other students tried to save some of the children, but some were trapped in the dormitory,” Eunice added.

Another parent, Terry, blamed poor parenting for the incident.

“My heart goes out to the parents who lost their children, but parents need to step up in raising their children. The school has been very keen on discipline, but as parents, we have relaxed,” she said.

“We need to be a bit tougher and guide our children appropriately because it is more about parenting than what happens in school. We should not be overly friendly with our children. We are losing lives because of one careless child who does not want to be in school. Even if they are tired of learning, they should at least value and save life,” Terry added.

The incident was particularly tragic for one student who lost both her parents in a road accident while they were travelling to school.

The parents reportedly died on their way to school while in a private vehicle. The mother is said to have died on the spot, while the father is receiving treatment after suffering serious injuries.

The daughter, who received the devastating news while at school waiting for her parents to pick her, was overwhelmed with grief and emotion.

At one point, she became inconsolable, causing a scene as she demanded to be allowed into the administration office where the students suspected of starting the fire had been locked in.

“I want those girls who killed my mum. My mum has died because of them,” she cried out outside the school’s administration block, where the suspected students were being held.

“My mother has died. She didn’t even live to see me score an A grade,” the student wailed, overcome with grief.

By the time of going to press, some parents had not known the status of their children even after investigators removed the bodies from the dormitory after processing the scene.