Days of mourning declared in Kenya after fatal school fire | BBC News

President William Ruto has declared three days of national mourning in Kenya following a fatal fire at a boarding school in Nyeri.

Seventeen pupils were confirmed dead by the Ministry of Education on Friday morning, while the deputy president said 70 children were unaccounted for, so the death toll could not be verified.

It is thought some of these children may have run into the local community to escape the fire, or were picked up by their parents without the school knowing.

More than 150 pupils were in the dormitory when it caught fire at around midnight local time. The average age of the victims was about nine years old, according to the police.

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