Eight students have been arrested in connection with a suspected arson attack at a Kenyan girls' school that killed 16 pupils, police announced, because apparently setting fire to a dormitory with 135 bunk beds is a team-building exercise gone horribly wrong.
The fire broke out in the early hours of Thursday at Utumishi Girls Academy in Gilgil, about 120km (77 miles) north-west of Nairobi, tearing through the upper floor of a dormitory packed with bunk beds - because nothing says "safe sleeping environment" like 135 beds in one room.
After interviewing students and staff and reviewing CCTV footage - the modern equivalent of asking "who did this?" while pointing at a screen - police identified eight pupils as "persons of interest in connection with the planning and execution" of the blaze. The students were traced to their homes and brought back to the school, while others who had remained in the area were also tracked down and detained. The eight were among 30 students initially recalled by detectives.
As investigators continue their work, parents and relatives broke down at the school waiting for updates. Security was heightened around the institution as crowds gathered demanding swift action and accountability - which, in Kenya's history of school fires, is a bit like demanding a fire extinguisher after the building has already burned down.
"I arrived at the school at 07:00 and three hours later I don't have any information," said Njuki Nthimba, looking for his niece. "Some officers came from the school and asked the parents to group themselves in three groups. Group one is for parents whose children have been arrested... group two is parents whose children died, and group three is parents who don't know where their children are." Because nothing says "supportive bureaucracy" like sorting grieving parents into categories.
Samuel Githua came looking for his sister. "I don't know where my sister is, we've been told some children are in hospital, some in the mortuary... Our mother died when we were young, so I have taken care of her like a father and mother. She has been my child."
Kenya has a long history of school fires - just two years ago, at least 21 people died in a dormitory fire in central Kenya. Many fires in boarding schools have been arson, with disgruntled pupils - angry about discipline and living conditions - accused of being responsible, while others were accidental. Overcrowding in dormitories and failure to follow safety guidelines - like keeping exits clear and windows unlocked - have frequently been blamed for the high number of casualties, because apparently fire safety is optional when you're trying to educate the next generation.