At least 16 students were killed and 73 injured at a girls' boarding school in central Kenya early Thursday, police officials said.

The Kenyan Red Cross said the blaze broke out around 1:00 in the morning at the Utumishi Girls' Academy Senior ‌School in Gilgil, but was only reported only more than two hours later.

"First responders, ambulance crew and our support personnel are currently on the ground," a spokesperson for the Red Cross told French news agency AFP.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

Kenyan President William Ruto said the fire was "an unimaginable tragedy."

"Our hearts and prayers are with the families who have lost their beloved daughters," he said in a statement on social media.

Frantic parents gather outside school

Authorities have confirmed that the fire has been contained.

"It is a distressing and saddening situation," county police official Masoud Mwinyi said addressing ​distraught parents outside the school, according to media reports.

Mwinyi told ⁠reporters that around 50 officers were searching the areas around the school for students who may have fled when the blaze broke out.

Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said the school is linked to the National Police Service and most pupils are the children of officers.

"We know that this is a very anxious moment," he told reporters at the scene.

History of school fires

School fires are relatively common in Kenya where electrical faults and arson have contributed to past tragedies. Experts say many of the fires were started by students protesting harsh discipline and poor conditions.

• In 2001, 67 students died in a dormitory fire in Machakos County
• In 2017, 10 students died in a school fire in the capital Nairobi for which one student was charged with murder
• In 2018, more ‌than ​60 cases of arson in public secondary schools were recorded
• In 2024, 21 students burned to death in a school fire in central Kenya

Edited by: Elizabeth Schumacher