Ten students arrested as school fires spark nationwide panic

Remains of the store that was burned after a fire at the Alliance High School. [Juliet Omelo, Standard]

Ten students are in custody as investigations intensify into a fire that gutted a store at Alliance High School, even as pressure mounts on authorities to consider precautionary closures before the midterm break amid a wave of unrest spreading across learning institutions nationwide.

The incident at Alliance High School, one of the country’s top-performing schools, which ranked second nationally in the 2024 KCSE exam with a 10.41 mean score behind Moi High School Kabarak, has heightened concern over the stability of institutions once regarded as secure learning environments.

The fire, which destroyed a store housing old mattresses on Wednesday night, is the latest in a series of disruptions at the school and has triggered emergency interventions involving the school management, Board of Management and Ministry of Education officials.

Principal David Kamau said preliminary findings point to internal student misconduct that escalated from earlier classroom disturbances.

“We had a situation where students interfered with the lighting in four classrooms. Later, two boys were captured on CCTV torching the store housing old mattresses and we decided to involve the Board of Management and the Ministry of Education,” Kamau said.

Remains of the store that was burned after a fire at the Alliance High School. [Juliet Omelo, Standard]

He said the administration initially engaged learners after the classroom incidents, believing the matter had been resolved before it escalated into arson. The incident prompted urgent consultations between education officials and school leadership, leading to the temporary release of students as investigations continue.

Regional Director of Education Sabina Aroni said the decision was intended to ease anxiety among students and parents.

“As a consensus, we agreed that due to anxiety that might build up among students and parents, we agreed that the students should be released to go home,” she said. Aroni confirmed that 10 students had been arrested and are assisting security agencies with investigations into the fire.

The closure is temporary, with Form Four students expected to report next week, followed by Form Two and Form Three students in a staggered return.

 Midterm break

The Alliance incident has added urgency to growing calls for precautionary closures, with some stakeholders arguing that the frequency and unpredictability of recent school fires signal a system struggling to contain emerging risks.

On Thursday, lobby group Baraza la Taifa called for an immediate one-week midterm closure of all learning institutions to allow for a nationwide safety audit.

National coordinator Kamotho Githinji warned that continued inaction could expose more learners to danger.

“As a nation, we cannot wait for another tragedy before taking decisive action. Every child deserves a safe, secure and protected environment. A temporary interruption of academic programmes would be a small sacrifice compared to the immeasurable value of protecting human life,” he said. The appeal comes amid rising anxiety among principals, teachers and education officers over recurring unrest cases reported across the country.

School heads who spoke to The Standard say they fear personal liability should disturbances occur under their watch.

This follows the Ministry of Education's action against the principal and two teachers at Utumishi Girls Senior School after investigators established that an intelligence warning on possible unrest had been received, but no effective intervention was taken before a dormitory fire that killed 16 girls. 

Additional reporting by Eucabeth Awuor