Sh5m property destroyed in dorm fire at Michuki Technical
Smoke billows from two dormitories at Michuki Technical Training Institute in Murang’a that were burnt on November 13, 2017 destroying property worth Sh5 million according to Principal John Gitonga Ndirangu. No student was injured. PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The principal said they were holding prayers for students sitting Knec exams when the fire broke out.
- Mr Ndirangu said that there was no injuries as there was no student inside the dormitories at the time the fire broke out.
- He called on the government and the local leaders to assist in rebuilding the hostels.
Fire has burnt down two dormitories at Michuki Technical Training Institute in Kangema Constituency, Murang’a County.
According to Principal John Gitonga Ndirangu, the cause of the Monday fire is unknown.
He said they had earlier held prayers for the students who are set to sit their Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) exams on Wednesday when they saw a huge smoke billowing from the dormitories, making the prayer session to end prematurely.
“We were in the middle of prayers when some students started screaming after noticing an enormous smoke coming from the direction of the dormitories that accommodates 72 students,” Mr Ndirangu told Nation, adding that they all came out of the meeting and started putting out the fire.
He said they did not manage to salvage anything from the dormitories known as Obama Hostels adding that property worth Sh5 million was destroyed by the fire.
NO INJURIES
Mr Ndirangu said that there was no injuries as there was no student inside the dormitories at the time the fire broke out.
The principal thanked the Murang’a County fire brigade for arriving at the scene in time, pointing out that with the help of the students they were able to eventually extinguish the fire.
He called on the government and the local leaders to assist in rebuilding the hostels saying the affected students have nowhere to sleep.
“The school has 1,070 students and we have no capacity to accommodate the affected students. I urge the government, local leaders and well-wishers to come to our rescue,” said the principal.
The students expressed fears following the fire scare, their performance in the exams they are about to sit may be affected.
“We have used a lot of money to register for the final exams and now all that we have revised has vanished [due to] the fire tragedy,” Mr James Wahome said.
Kangema OCPD Cosmas Wachang’oka said they have launched investigations to establish the cause of the fire.
