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Students linked to the Utumishi Girls High School dormitory fire that claimed the lives of 16 students appear before Chief Magistrate Ramadhan Abdulqadir at the Naivasha Law Courts.[Kipsang Joseph, Standard]
The recent arson at Utumishi Girls Academy jolted the very neurobiology of a school community, sending an already burdened nation into grief, confusion, and even division. Many of us are searching for answers. Who should be blamed, and why did such a senseless act occur?
As both an adolescent medicine specialist and a parent, I initially found it too hard to confront this painful reality. Yet, amid that discomfort, one question persisted: Where do we go from here?
To take a step back, Kenya has walked this difficult road before. In 2016 alone, approximately 130 school fires were reported over two months during the second term. In the aftermath, mental health professionals, educators, and researchers worked to understand the “why”.
