At least 17 pupils have died in a fire at a boarding school for primary school-aged children in central Kenya, police say.

Authorities said more than a dozen children up to the age of 12 from the Hillside Endarasha Primary School in Nyeri county were rushed to hospital with severe burns after the blaze on Thursday. There are fears that the death toll could rise.

It is unclear yet what caused the school fire, but arson attacks at Kenyan boarding schools have become an alarming national trend. More than 100 children have died in the past two decades from fire-related incidents in schools.

Here’s what we know about the incident, and what’s causing Kenya’s school fire problem:

What happened at the Hillside Endarasha Primary School?

Fire broke out on Thursday night at the co-educational primary school, which has about 800 pupils aged five to 12. About 150 boys were believed to be in a dormitory when it caught fire.

Authorities have not confirmed or ruled out arson. Police said investigative teams have been deployed to the school, which has now been cordoned off.

Speaking to the AFP news agency, police spokesperson Resila Onyango said recovered bodies were “burnt beyond recognition”.

The Kenya Red Cross (KRC) said at least 11 injured children were rushed to Nyeri Provincial General Hospital after what it called a “tragic incident”.

The organisation also said it has set up a tracing desk for missing pupils. In addition, the KRC said it will provide psychosocial support to pupils, teachers and affected families.

President William Ruto described the fire on Friday morning as “devastating news”.

“We pray for speedy recovery to the survivors. I instruct relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate this horrific incident. Those responsible will be held to account,” Ruto posted on the social media platform X.

Do school fires occur frequently in Kenya?

Unfortunately, yes, particularly fires in boarding schools. In several cases, authorities have confirmed arson as the cause and have usually found students to be the culprits.

In 2016, Kenyan authorities documented 130 cases of school burnings related to student unrest. At least 63 arson cases were reported in 2018, according to parliamentary records.

Fires were started in boys, girls and co-educational schools.

Many parents in Kenya choose to send their children to primary boarding schools because they believe these schools provide children with a better environment for learning, have better discipline and reduce the burden of daily transportation costs, according to the journal Kenya Studies Review.

What causes school fires in Kenya?

The leading cause of school fires is arson, according to the findings of a study by University of Nairobi researcher Isaac Muasya. Faulty electrical appliances such as electric cookers and flammable substances such as cigarettes also pose a significant risk, Muasya’s study found.

When are school fires most likely to occur?

Arsons are usually committed at night and often in school dormitories, according to studies, meaning they tend to cause maximum harm.

Dissatisfaction and unrest among students, young people and children is also more likely to mount during the second term of school, which tends to be longer than the first and third terms.

Added weeks of extracurricular activities and sports competitions extend the school term. Resulting fatigue from extracurricular and academic work, researchers and authorities found, is likely to lead to unrest.

Students often have to leave school for a period of time after a fire breaks out. In some cases, the students are also required to collectively pay for the damage in the next term, leading to complaints from parents. Officials said that decision is often made by the school management, not the government. It’s unclear if the Kenyan government funds repairs after damage to schools from fires. 

What have been the worst fires?

The 2001 Kyanguli Secondary School fire in the southern county of Machakos resulted in the deaths of 67 boys, the highest death toll of any school fire in Kenya. Nineteen were injured.

The dormitory set on fire was locked at one end at the time of the blaze while bars on the windows meant many students became trapped inside.

Two students – Felix Mambo Ngumbao (age unknown) and Davis Onyango Opiyo, who was then 16 – were arrested and charged with murder. After a long trial, a judge declared a mistrial in 2006. It’s unclear what happened to the suspects.

The Kenyan government awarded parents of the affected children a total of 54 million Kenyan shillings ($419,384) in 2019.

In 2017, an arson attack at the Moi Girls High School in Nairobi resulted in the deaths of 10 girls. A 14-year-old student was charged with manslaughter after a court found she did not mean to cause harm. In 2022, the unnamed student was handed a five-year jail term.

Other fires during the past three decades in Kenya include:

• 1997 at Bombolulu Girls Secondary School in the southern coastal Kwale county: 26 girls died in a suspected arson attack.
• 1999 at Nyeri High School in Nyeri: Four male senior prefects were locked in a dormitory by fellow students and set ablaze. All died.
• 2010 at Endarasha Boys Secondary School in Nyeri: Two boys died in a fire.
• 2021 at Buruburu Girls School in Nairobi: 63 girls were hospitalised after a fire

School arson cases have rarely resulted in trials or convictions. The Moi Girls High School judgement in 2022 was seen as a landmark case in the country because of the rarity of convictions in school arsons.

Why are young people burning down schools in Kenya?

Anger and frustration

Kenya’s National Crime Research Centre (NCRC) found in 2017 that student arsonists are triggered by frustration at poor school conditions or are angered by teachers they perceive to be hostile. Pressure around exams, strict rules and lengthy school terms have all been listed as common motivations.

In the Machakos case, the two boys arrested and charged with arson were said to be aggrieved about the cancellation of exam results after an investigation into cheating, among other complaints.

In 2021, after COVID-19 shutdowns, Kenyan students speaking to journalists reported starting the day at 4:30am and ending at 10pm to catch up on missed studies. They also said the workload was heavier as teachers raced to get through the curriculum.

Lack of discipline and peer pressure

The NCRC also attributed the trend to pressure from friends and copycat behaviour by students who had learned of incidents in other schools.

A report ordered by the Kenyan Parliament in 2018 further identified substance abuse as one of the triggers for cases of unrest in schools, including arson and student walkouts.

Inadequate counselling services in schools were found to be exacerbating the issues.

How are authorities trying to curb the arson attacks?

Despite this recurring trend, the Kenyan school curriculum had not included fire hazards and safety training as of 2022, researchers found.

Half of public schools had never carried out fire safety assessments for their school buildings, according to the study by Muawya. In Machakos county, where the case with the highest death toll was recorded, more than 75 percent of students polled said they did not know what a fire drill was.

However, the study found that many schools had installed fire extinguishers.

Authorities in 2023 banned highly feared mock exams, which were usually set for final-year students to prepare them for school-leaving certificate exams, due to the stress students faced.