Endarasha fire tragedy: Martha Karua calls for arraignment of school owners

Narc Kenya party leader Martha Karua has called on relevant authorities to move with speed and arraign the owners of Hillside Endarasha Academy over the fire tragedy that killed 21 pupils.

Karua through a statement shared via her official X account on Monday, September 9, 2024, said the owners or managers of the school should be taken to court for criminal negligence.

Karua on accountability

The Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition running mate for the 2022 presidential elections told the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) that arraigning the school bosses will help push the accountability bar high for all schools across the country.

Karua wondered why, until now, no one has been arraigned in court over the fire tragedy that has left the parents in grief.

“By today morning the owners/managers of #HillsideEndarashaAcademy should have been arraigned in court for criminal negligence @AGOfficeKenya @ODPP_KE it’s the only way to push accountability bar high for all schools and all caregivers,” Karua stated.

By today morning the owners/managers of #HillsideEndarashaAcademy should have been arraigned in court for criminal negligence @AGOfficeKenya @ODPP_KE it’s the only way to push accountability bar high for all schools and all caregivers

— Martha Karua SC (@MarthaKarua) September 9, 2024

Karua joins other political elites in calling for accountability following the unfortunate incident.

Ban on boarding

Earlier on, Dagoretti Member of Parliament Beatrice Elachi had called for a ban on boarding facilities in primary schools across Kenya.

The lawmaker insists that young children should not be separated from their families at such a crucial developmental stage, arguing that day schooling would be safer and more beneficial for primary-aged students.

Elachi’s remarks were made during a morning show on a local TV station on Monday, September 9, 2024, where she emphasized the need for more stringent regulations to protect children.

“And then we go to the next question whether this is gonna teach us that going forward no primary school, no, should be boarding. NO PRIMARY SCHOOL SHOULD BE BOARDING.

“Let parents take care of their children in primary school as they move to high school,” she declared, emphasizing the importance of keeping children with their families.

The lawmaker further highlighted the vulnerability of young children in such tragic events, pointing out that the pupil’s underdeveloped respiratory systems could not cope with the smoke from the fire at Endarasha school.

“You see these young babies, I will call them babies, these children were asleep. It means they were choked (by smoke) that’s why they were unable to wake up and run because they were choked by smoke, their respiratory are very fragile,” she stressed.

DCI action

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) today Monday, September 9, 2024, kicked off the identification process on the bodies of pupils who perished in the Hillside Endarasha Academy dormitory fire.

Nyeri County Commissioner Pius Murugu had earlier on stated that the bodies are in the Naromoru Level 4 Hospital.

Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor stated that the bodies are severely burned, making identification challenging.

DNA collection from families has commenced, with autopsies scheduled for Tuesday, followed by the reconciliation of DNA samples.

The fire broke out on September 6, 2024, in a dormitory housing over 150 boys aged 10 to 14.

The wooden structure of the dormitory allowed the fire to spread rapidly, affecting boys from Grades 4 to 8.

Latest Endarasha tragedy developments

Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura in a statement issued on Monday, September 9, 2024, said 19 bodies were recovered from the dormitory, while two other pupils died while undergoing treatment in hospital.

Parents of the 19 pupils that were killed in the fire have not been able to identify their bodies, with the government promising to give update on the DCI’s scientific analysis as soon as the information is made available.

Out of the 330 pupils in the school’s boarding facility (166 girls and 164 boys), Mwaura says all the girls have returned home safely to their parents, and all the boys have been accounted for.