Fire rips through a dormitory at a girls' school in Kenya, killing at least 16 students

GILGIL, Kenya (AP) — Flames ripped through a dormitory at a girls’ boarding school in central Kenya on Thursday, killing at least 16 students and injuring scores of others in the latest deadly school fire in the East African country. Police questioned surviving students about how it started.

The fire happened at the Utumishi Girls School, which has more than 800 students, in the Gilgil area of central Kenya, Education Minister Julius Ogamba said, adding that 79 students were injured in the disaster.

Detectives were questioning students to determine whether any wrongdoing triggered the fire, and Ogamba said authorities were trying to find out whether the school's fire safety manual had been adhered to.

The victims were not yet been identified, a source of anger and frustration for parents who gathered outside the ruined dormitory. Some of them angrily confronted police guarding the site, demanding to see the remains of still-uncollected victims.

Bernard Omwandho, a representative of the parents’ association, urged calm as the police investigation continued.

“Most of the parents who are still here are those whose daughters are being questioned,” he said, adding that he hoped that those being questioned will be “able to at least shed some light or give us a hint on what really transpired.”

The school is located about 120 kilometers (75 miles) northwest of the capital, Nairobi. The government-owned secondary school is managed and sponsored by the Kenya Police Service. Many of the students are the daughters of police officers.

Elizabeth Rioba, a mother of two girls at the school, said she was relieved to see her daughters but expressed concern because one of the girls saw her friend get stuck while trying to jump out of a window.

“She’s very traumatized, but I’m relieved she’s OK and I’m sad for all these children who have died,” she told The Associated Press.

The Kenya Red Cross said several students were evacuated and are receiving treatment in various hospitals. The group said it sent psychological support teams for students and their families.

Kenyan President William Ruto expressed his condolences in a statement. “No words can truly ease the pain of losing young lives filled with promise, hope, and dreams for the future,” Ruto said. “As a nation, we mourn with the parents, guardians, teachers, and fellow students who are enduring this unimaginable tragedy.”

Fires at schools have been a cause of concern for education officials in East Africa, where classrooms and dormitories are often crowded, and there’s usually no firefighting equipment in place. Officials sometimes cite poor electrical connections as sparking blazes.

In 2024, 21 students burned to death in a school fire in central Kenya. Ruto declared three days of mourning.

Kenya’s deadliest school fire in recent history occurred in 2001 when 67 students died in a dormitory fire in Machakos County.

In 2017, 10 students died in a school fire in Nairobi. A student was charged with murder.

A victim of a fire is carried from a Kenyan Air Force aircraft at St. Joseph Hospital after a fire at Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Ngugi)

The bodies of students who died in the fire are in body bags outside the dormitory at the Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

Students gather after a fire at Utumishi Girls School in Gilgil, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

Red Cross members recover the bodies of students who died in the fire at the Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

Police officers stand near the scene of an early morning fire outbreak at Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

An injured student is evacuated following an early morning fire outbreak at Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

An injured student is evacuated following an early morning fire outbreak at Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

An injured student is evacuated following an early morning fire outbreak at Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

An injured student is evacuated following an early morning fire outbreak at Utumishi Girls School in the Gilgil area, central Kenya, Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

The Champions League, European club soccer's most important trophy, is at stake when Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal meet in Budapest on Saturday. For PSG and Luis Enrique, it doesn’t end there.

On the line for the defending champion and its serial-winning Spanish coach is the chance to stake its claim to be considered the greatest team of this era.

“I arrived at the club thinking, ‘My objective is to make history,’ and we have indeed made history,” Luis Enrique said. “We want to keep writing the story because we believe there’s still more there for us to achieve.”

PSG is already in the conversation when it comes to judging the finest teams to have won the title in the age of the Champions League. But sometimes cold, hard facts are required to drive the point home.

Victory at Puskas Arena would see PSG become only the second team to retain the trophy since the old European Cup was rebranded as the Champions League in 1992.

For many years it didn't happen even for teams regarded as generationally great.

Pep Guardiola's Barcelona won two in three years. AC Milan and Juventus each reached three consecutive finals in the '90s but only won one apiece. Ajax and Manchester United took title defenses all the way to the final only to fall at the last hurdle.

Real Madrid — winner of more European titles than any other club — finally bucked that trend, winning three in a row from 2016-18. What seemed unthinkable before and since would suddenly seem a very real target for PSG if it prevails on Saturday.

Luis Enrique would join Guardiola and Zinedine Zidane as a three-time Champions League winner. Not that his motivation is based on personal accolades.

Having won the Champions League with Barcelona, Luis Enrique has produced a PSG team that has set the benchmark in Europe over the past two seasons. It combines attacking flair with an energy and tenacity that appears to be moving the sport in a new direction. A team that plays with a high risk of being exposed defensively for the ultimate reward.

At its best, PSG seems unstoppable, with last year's 5-0 rout of Inter Milan in the final the most dominant in the tournament's 70-year history.

And with a squad that has an average age of under 24, the potential is there for it to dominate for years to come.

Desire Doue, the two-goal hero of last year's final, is just 20. Tireless midfielder Joao Neves is 21.

It is plain to see in PSG's performances — such as the 5-4 win over Bayern Munich in the semifinals — that this is a special team, but titles are needed to confirm its status among the greatest.

To many, Guardiola's Barcelona that won in 2009 and 2011 with Lionel Messi, Xavi and Andres Iniesta is the benchmark for the modern era.

To some, Luis Enrique's title-winning Barcelona team in 2015, spearheaded by Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, was even better.

Statistically, none can match Zinedine Zidane's Madrid team of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos that won three consecutive titles. Over a five-year period Madrid was European champion four times.

Overall, PSG has a long way to go to come close to Madrid's 15 titles, having won the Champions League for the first time last year. But it can stake its claim to be considered the best of its era.

PSG has certainly taken its time to reach this point. Backed by Qatari riches, it bought the best players in the world in its bid to conquer Europe — Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Zlatan Ibrahimovic as billions of dollars were spent.

It wasn't until there was a shift in focus to a more team-based model — still packed with superstars acquired at exorbitant cost — that PSG reached the summit.

Out went the Galacticos Messi, Neymar and finally Mbappe. In came Doue, Joao Neves, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Ousmane Dembele — a player who hadn't fulfilled expectations at Barcelona — who re-emerged in Paris as the talisman of a spectacularly talented, but inexperienced group.

A semifinal in Luis Enrique's first campaign was followed by last year's triumph and the chance to go back-to-back this season.

“I’d say there was more pressure last season because everyone was like, ‘This is it! We can’t lose this time!’” Luis Enrique said. “This time around, there is pressure because we believe we deserve it.”

While PSG targets history, Arsenal is aiming to pull off an upset and win its first Champions League title.

The Premier League champion advanced to the final after topping the league phase with a perfect winning record.

Mikel Arteta's team lost to PSG in last year's semifinals.

“It’s two teams that are exceptional in the way they function, (how) they adapt and the intensity they play with,” Arteta said. “We’re going to have to be our best version to win it.”

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Arsenal players celebrate their Premier League title with the trophy after the English Premier League soccer match between Crystal Palace and Arsenal in London, England, Sunday, May 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)