How students expelled from Rakai School revenged by burning colleagues in dormitory

Police in Rakai have started investigations into the circumstance under which the boys’ dormitory at St.Benard Secondary School in Kifamba sub county, Rakai district was set ablaze last night.

According to the Rakai District Police Commander, Ben Kashumbusha, the incident happened at around 2 am when the boys’ dormitory for mostly S.3 students was set ablaze killing 10 students instantly.

“We suspect the fire was set by fellow students who had been expelled from school and had to commute from home to write their final UCE exams,”Kashumbusha told the Nile Post in a phone interview on Monday morning.

How they orchestrated mission

According to the DPC, investigators suspect that after being expelled from school, the students who were not happy with the decision by the management planned to revenge by collaborating with other people inside the school.

“We have not clearly found out how they accessed the school but we suspect that they coordinated the mission together with colleagues inside the school that on the day of the mission, it was easy for them to access the school,” the senior police officer said.

“On entering, the assailants who were armed with petrol and matchboxes first put padlocks on the dormitory’s door setting it ablaze.”

He added that the police fire brigade had to break the padlock on the door in order to rescue some of the students from the raging fire.

The Nile Post has however separately learnt  that on being expelled from school over indiscipline, the 15 students involved in the saga rented a room in a nearby trading centre from where they commuted to write their final exams.

It is also alleged that whenever they returned to their room from school, the students always watched moving and abuse of drugs.

10 dead, more than 50 critically injured

According to police, by the time the fire brigade arrived at the school, 10 students were already dead whereas many others were in critical condition.

The DPC told this website that they suspect the dormitory was housing more than 100 students adding that over 50 are in critical condition after being admitted to Kitovu government hospital.

“We have arrested two former students and the warden to assist us in investigations into the matter,” he added.

This website has also learnt that the number of students arrested has now reached four.

He appealed to any member of the public with information regarding the fire to provide it with the police to help them in investigations.

Past incidents

In the past, a number of school dormitories have been prone to fire incidents killing a number of students.

In April 2008, a fire caught a girls’ dormitory at Buddo Junior School leaving 20 pupils dead.

There have been more fires at Bishop Ruhindi High School in Rukungiri District,

Bukoyo Secondary School in Iganga District,St Mary’s College in Buikwe District,St John Bosco Primary School –Katende, one pupil was killed,Kawempe Muslim SS, Merryland High School, Kibibi Junior School, Light College Katikamu, Moyo SS and St Leo’s Junior School.