80 students 'inhaled smoke' in Buru Buru Girls dormitory fire

Buruburu Girls Secondary School fire: A parent who had rushed to the school following the fire incident comforts her daughter. [Jack Kibet, Standard]

At least 80 students of Buruburu Girls High School, Nairobi, were taken to hospital following a fire outbreak in their dormitories.

Two students were admitted to hospital for examination, including through X-ray, after jumping from the first floor of the dormitory in the Sunday evening incident.

The school’s principal Carol Maina said the students were taken to Metropolitan and Jamaa hospitals. Police had a hard time controlling parents who thronged the school after a clip of some students jumping from the upper floor of the dormitory went viral.

Nairobi Women Representative Esther Passaris, Education Principal Secretary Julius Jwan and some leaders addressed parents to assure them of the safety of the students, even as ambulances ferried some to hospitals.

“Even though you saw the videos, one of the girls who jumped has been attended to and the other one is being examined. There are about 80 students who inhaled smoke and could not be admitted because the hospitals are overwhelmed,” Passaris said.

The PS said the fire started in one cubicle, sending panic among students, and causing some to jump to safety. Others inhaled smoke. He said investigation would be done to establish cause of the fire.