The recent tragedy at Utumishi Girls High School in Gilgil, where at least 16 students were tragically lost their lives and more than 70 others injured in a dormitory fire, is not only shocking but a painful reminder of why we must treat the safety of our students, in both day schools and boarding schools, with the seriousness it deserves.
While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, with authorities examining whether safety protocols were followed, it is time to rethink security as a whole. Tragedies such as this serve as a warning. A warning that it is high time, not just for school managements but for all of us to think about safety protocols and measures every day.
Protection of every individual in Kenya is guaranteed in the Constitution under the Bill of Rights, including the protection of our children.
Sadly, it is not the first time that we are witnessing these occurrences. In 2024, 21 boys were killed at a boarding school.
In 2017, 10 girls died while a fire blazed through their school. In 2016, there were about 120 incidents of students setting fire to their dormitories. A 2022 report by the Auditor-General also found that most of the public schools were not prepared to deal with fires.
While we wait for the report on whether safety protocols were followed, we must have an honest conversation about safety. Safety is no longer how well we react when a tragedy happens. It is now about reducing the chances of the tragedy happening.
In the case of the fire in the dormitory, we must insist that we have mandatory regular fire-risk assessments, clear and unobstructed emergency exits, functioning alarms, smoke detectors, accessible fire extinguishers, fire sirens, locking mechanisms integrated with the fire alarm system to allow automatic unlocking during emergencies, and proper inspection of the types of windows fitted to ensure they do not hinder escape or rescue efforts.
It also calls for regular fire drills and safety training, which should not just be a tick-the-box activity but a serious exercise to gauge the preparedness of both students and staff. It is also worth having fire marshals in every institution.
These fire marshals should be trained on how to guide the students in the event of a fire. These marshals don’t just have to be the staff in the schools. The student leaders can also be trained. This will allow them to take ownership and encourage other students to be marshals to help in the event of a fire.
Additionally, schools should consider having designated supervisors sleep within dormitory areas to enable faster response and coordination during emergencies, especially at night when students are most vulnerable.
Boarding schools already demonstrate commitment to health and cleanliness through regular inspections; it is time that dormitory safety is afforded the same level of scrutiny. Fire drills, too, should go beyond routine practice to incorporate broader emergency response training, ensuring that clear evacuation routes are established and known by every student and member of staff.
But it is not just the schools that need to think about safety measures. Most of our homes are death traps. We build beautiful homes, but with no plan for what happens in the event of an emergency like fire. When we think of security, we are quick to get a guard, an electric fence or CCTV cameras.
We don’t think of the danger that lurks in the event of a fire breaking out in our houses, yet we are prone to having these emergencies because we are always dealing with fire in our kitchens. We rarely have firefighting equipment at our homes, smoke detectors, and worse still, little to no knowledge of what to do in a fire emergency.
We have seen school officials and government officials read out statements after the tragedy. However, statements on what will be done while expressing sorrow are not enough.
We must have someone take responsibility for the fire safety, especially in our schools. Who is in charge of the inspections? Who follows up on defects? Who can we point towards when the emergency happens and we lose lives again over something that we could have prevented?
It also calls for partnerships between schools, government agencies and the private security industry. We must work together in preventing risks, especially in schools. Security should go beyond manning gates.
Fire is a serious security threat that we must anticipate. We must support schools to install and maintain safety equipment, help them ensure they are well prepared for the fire by carrying out their drills, and help them develop response procedures.
The lives of the young girls cut short in the fire tragedy must be a wake-up call, and we should never wake up to such news again, not when we have the capacity and knowledge to prevent these disasters. When designing any school, building or home, we should ask ourselves whether we are likely to get out alive if a disaster were to strike.
The writer is Country Manager, SGA Security Kenya
