Three pupils die in Uasin Gishu school pit latrine tragedy

Three pupils died after a pit latrine collapsed and sunk at Queen of Angels Turbo School in Uasin Gishu County.

A few others were injured following the incident at the school located near Turbo Girls High School.

Police and rescuers were called to the scene, where they struggled to pull out the pupils who had gone to relieve themselves when the latrine collapsed.

Turbo Sub-County Police Commander Patrick Wekesa said rescuers managed to pull out the injured pupils, but unfortunately, three of them had died.

“Some were pulled out from the latrine and taken to hospital in critical condition,” said Wekesa.

He said police would issue clear details after clearing the scene.

The deceased pupils were aged below 10 years and were in Grade One and Two. All of them were girls.

An excavator was used to help dig up the area and establish if other pupils were trapped.

Wekesa said they were carrying out investigations to establish the cause of the collapse.

Heavy rains have been pounding the region, causing the soil to weaken due to flooding, including at the school.

The school is owned by the Catholic Church, and Father Mathew Too, who is the Education Secretary of Catholic schools in the Eldoret Catholic Diocese region, was also among those who rushed to the scene.

“This is a very unfortunate incident, and the toilet had not shown any signs of collapsing before the incident,” said Too.

He said the incident may have been as a result of the heavy rains.

Too said all other facilities at the school were undergoing inspection by engineers to establish their suitability for use.

Wilson Sawe, who is Director of Administration and Planning in the Department of Education, also visited the school, which is partly boarding and day.

“We are saddened by this incident and have taken measures to ensure that all other pupils are safe. We will wait for investigations to establish the actual cause,” he said.

He said the ministry had directed an inspection of all schools in the region to ensure they are safe, especially during the ongoing rains.

Nelson Kirui, who is KNUT Executive Secretary for Eldoret West, also visited the school and expressed sadness over the loss of the pupils.

“We call on the government to inspect facilities at all schools and ensure all our children are safe, especially during the ongoing heavy rains,” said Kirui.