Eight girls arrested on suspicion of arson after Kenya school fire

A fire broke out in the early hours of Thursday at Utumishi Girls Academy Senior School in Gilgil, west-central Kenya. Sixteen people died and 79 others were injured. Police said at least eight students were arrested on suspicion of arson and are in custody. The Directorate of Criminal Investigation reported preliminary investigations identified eight people as persons of interest connected to the planning and execution of the suspected arson attack. Parents waited for information while some reported they had not seen their children. A student described being badly injured, struggling to breathe, and escaping through a window because there was no water to put out the flames. Authorities continued investigating potential arson.

"The fire broke out in the early hours of Thursday at the Utumishi Girls Academy Senior School in Gilgil, west-central Kenya. On Friday, the Directorate of Criminal Investigation said preliminary investigations had identified eight people as persons of interest in connection with the planning and execution of the suspected arson attack. The eight girls have since been arrested and are currently in police custody, the statement added."

"Reporting from the school, Al Jazeera's Catherine Soi said police are still investigating potential arson. We have been speaking to parents who have been here since the early morning, they were very frustrated earlier because nobody was giving them information, she said. We have parents who say they haven't seen their children at all I guess those are the ones, the students [who] died and then we have parents of whose loved ones, the students, are still inside being interrogated, Soi added."

"Student Hilda Njeri, who was in one of the dorms most-affected by the fire, told Al Jazeera she was still dealing with everything that happened. I was badly injured on my leg, and my lower back was badly injured, Njeri said outside the school on Friday, adding that the principal took the students to hospital and paid all bills for treatment. The fire was very [big]; we could not pass through the fire because we had no water to put out the fire, so we had to jump through the window, she said, adding that she struggled to breathe while inside the building."

Read at www.aljazeera.com