At least 17 pupils killed in Kenya school fire - police

At least 17 pupils have died after a school in central Kenya caught fire on Thursday night, police said.

There are fears that the death toll could rise as more than a dozen others have been taken to hospital with severe burns.

The cause of the fire at Hillside Endarasha Primary in Nyeri county is being investigated, police spokesperson Resila Onyango told local media.

A team of investigators has been deployed to the school, Ms Onyango added.

• The terrors of Kenya’s school fire epidemic

School fires are relatively common in Kenyan boarding schools.

In 2017, 10 students died in an arson attack at Moi Girls High School in the capital Nairobi.

At least 67 students died in Machakos County, south-east of Nairobi in the deadliest Kenyan school arson that took place 20 years ago.

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