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By Dr. Ekrah Ndung’u
Learning in Kenya has grown momentously especially after the free primary and highly subsidized secondary school education that was realized during the tenure of the Late President Mwai Kibaki when he took the mantle of leadership at the beginning of this millenium.
Ambitiously, he crafted the Vision 2030, which the Education Pillar is accorded great emphasis: The education sector has reviewed its policies, legal framework, and carried out institutional reforms to enhance education quality and relevance.
School fires in Kenya present a grim history of both tragedy and arson intertwined.
In recent years, school fires in Kenya have become a terrifying and all-too-familiar occurrence, particularly in boarding schools. The recent fire on September 5 has once again raised urgent questions about the causes of these fires.
The Hillside Endarasha Primary School fire, which claimed the lives of 18 students and left 13 others seriously injured and the most recent, triggered Kenyans’ memories of the tragic Kyanguli Secondary School fire in 2001 where a fire set by two 16-year-old students in Kenya resulted in the deaths of 67 students. Many more infernos have tested the learning institutions’ tenacity, and preparedness to prevent and respond to fire disasters.
As Authorities continue to weave together strands of evidence to deliver a tentative cause of the Endarasha Hillside Academy fire, previous cases have pointed arson as the leading cause of many of these fires. The fires are intentionally set by students who often harbor rebellion, dissatisfaction, unrest, or protest, particularly at night in dormitories where escape routes are limited.
The recurrence of such incidents underscores the urgent need for enhanced safety measures and crisis management strategies in Kenyan schools to protect the lives of students.
