Endarasha Academy Fire Tragedy
The public inquest into the tragic fire at Hillside Endarasha Academy, which was supposed to kick off on Thursday, has now been pushed back to November this year.
On Thursday morning, the parents of the 21 boys who lost their lives in the dormitory fire back in September 2024 showed up at the Nyeri court, only to find out that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) hadn’t submitted the investigative file from last year’s inquiry into the incident.
Their lawyer, Raphael Okubo, conveyed to the court that the parents had not received any official updates from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) or the government about the inquest proceedings.
“We came to register our presence and to be made part of the court proceedings because, surprisingly, the victims’ parents have not been informed and were unaware of the process. We came today to formally request inclusion in the proceedings,” said Okubo.
The inquest was moved to court following a recommendation by the ODPP, which suggested handling the case as an inquest.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen made this announcement at the Jukwaa la Usalama forum in Nyeri on August 26.
Last month, the grieving parents of the boys who lost their lives, along with the Kenya Human Rights Commission and the Elimu Bora Working Group, took a significant step by filing a constitutional petition.
This petition aims to hold accountable the school owners, the National Education Board, the Nyeri County Director of Education, the Nyeri County Education Board, and the Education Cabinet Secretary for their failure to protect the students, which led to this heartbreaking tragedy.
The petitioners are also urging the court to compel the seven respondents to make public the findings of the investigation into the cause of the fire.
They argue that their right to human dignity, as outlined in Article 28 of the Constitution, is being violated by the respondents’ reluctance to reveal the cause and circumstances surrounding the fire that took their sons’ lives.
Okubo has formally requested access to all documents and evidence that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) and the state plan to use in the prosecution.
He confirmed that the upcoming public inquest will not interfere with the constitutional petition that was filed on September 23, 2025.
The inquest has now been rescheduled to take place on November 20 before Magistrate Maryanne Gituma.
Endarasha Academy Fire Tragedy
