Learners’ property destroyed as fire guts school dormitory
Some of the pupils property that got destoryed in a fire at Hiden Treasure Nursary and Primary School in Kiboga District on Sunday evening. PHOTO | EDISON NDYASIIMA
What you need to know:
- Mr Richard Nyaika, the officer in charge of Kiboga Police Station, said their preliminary investigations point to an electrical short circuit to be the possible cause of the inferno.
Police in Kiboga District are investigating the cause of a fire that gutted a Boys' dormitory at Hidden Treasure Nursery and Primary School Sunday night.
Properties worth millions of money including mattresses, shoes, suitcases, clothes and books perished in the devastating inferno. Fortunately, no life was hurt as they were outside receiving supper at 8pm.
“We saw fire emerging from one of the corners of the dormitory as we were receiving super and others were in the mosque praying. We made an alarm which attracted teachers, but they arrived when most of our belongings had been destroyed,” one of the pupils said.
Mr Richard Nyaika, the officer in charge of Kiboga Police Station, said their preliminary investigations point to an electrical short circuit to be the possible cause of the inferno.
“Our team is on the ground to gather more information and we appeal for cooperation from the school management,” he said.
He said police could have stopped the fire before causing damage if they had a fire tender at the station. The school is located about three kilometres away from the police station.
A fire tender could only come from either Mityana or Hoima located 160km and 186km away respectively.
Mr Sirajje Kizito, the school director, said he suspects the blaze could be the work of arsonists.
“I rule out an electrical short circuit to be the cause of this fire because we replaced faulty wires in the dormitories towards the end of the last term, I am ready to work with all authorities to establish the actual cause of this incident,” he said.
This is the third school to suffer a fire outbreak in a space of 10 days in the region. On September 23, the fire gutted a boys’ dormitory at Aidah and Topher Primary School in Kanoni Town Council, Gomba District and leaving our pupil injured. Two days later, a similar incident happened at Masaka Parents Secondary School and property worth millions were destroyed.
