Fire guts Kibuli secondary school dormitory

By Darious Magara   
 
KAMPALA - Fire believed to have been caused by a short (electrical ) circuit gutted a boys' dormitory at Kibuli Secondary School Friday night.

No-one was injured in the inferno since all the students were in class for night preps.

The school head teacher Hajj Matovu Ibrahim said the 118 affected students, all in Senior One, had been sent home to collect beddings and personal effects.

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“The students have a week to return to school but parents who can mobilize the needed items in a few days will be allowed back," said the school head.

He added: "Meanwhile we have got alternative accommodation as were repair the damaged dormitory.  Apart from the students' property,  all beds in the double-storied building were burnt beyond repair."

Matovu ruled out any act of sabotage or of indiscipline, saying the fire was sparked by some short circuit.

“Nothing was rescued from the burnt section. Even teachers went there but could not stop it, but prevented affected students from entering the dormitory.” he said.

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One of the affected students who was clad in school uniform and carrying a book said that (the book) is all he had left in his possession.

“The fire started when some of us were in the mosque and others in class. We did not pick anything, this is how I am going home” he said.

The school headmaster sat at one of the gates of the school where he attended to visitors and parents, during which he said the scene of fire was out of bounds at the time so as to prevent the school from getting chaotic.

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“It is only the police that are at the scene of the fire. We do not know the intention of other visitors and all have to be attended to here,” he said.

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The Kabalagala Officer in Charge of Criminal Investigations, Kemigisha Nusura, said preliminary investigations indicated that the fire was caused by a short circuit.

She and her team had camped at the school to assess the level of damage of property but said the burnt metallic beds were repairable.