Night of terror as neighbours recount Endarasha Hillside Academy fire tragedy

Neighbours of the Endarasha Hillside Academy were among the first responders to the tragic events of Thursday night that left 21 boys dead.

The neighbours recounted the events that have changed the narrative of the neighbourhood, and the night of terror that has left the community reeling in shock and grief.

It’s been over 48 hours since a fire broke out at the Endarasha Hillside Academy, taking the lives of 21 boys, and the community is still coming to terms with those tragic events.

Eric Waweru, a neighbour to the school, recalled the darkness and the stillness of the night, pierced by cries of boys in distress.

He, alongside others from the neighbourhood, answered that distress call, and rushed to the scene of the incident only to be met with sights incomprehensible.

"I was woken up by screams,” he explained. "Kufika huko moto ilikuwa imesambaa sana, tulijaribu kuweka maji ikakataa, tukajaribu vijiti ikakataa."

The first responders say they could not do so much; the flames were too high, the smoke too much. They tried to save as many of the young children, according to the presidential statement, a majority of them aged between 9 and 13, but the force of the blaze was too much.

"We tried to rescue the pupils trapped inside, the fire was uncontrollable,” he noted.

They ended up watching helplessly as the fire devoured the building, and sadly, the lives of the young souls who were unable to escape the death chamber that the dormitory had suddenly turned into. There were those who were saved though.

"Hao watu wengi walikuwa upande wa juu mahali moto ilikuwa inaelekea, sikuona watu wengi juu ya moto,” added Eric.

The neighbours say this incident, a permanent memory for them, will live with them. The cries of the souls lost in the fire are a constant reminder of a dark night in the region’s history.