Three people were injured, two of them critically, following an early Friday, December 19 morning fire at an orphanage in Shibiriri Village, Lurambi Sub-County, Kakamega County.

According to the eyewitnesses, the house, which had ten occupants at the time of the incident, was gutted by the fire.

Some of the children were rescued and temporarily relocated to the Heroes Orphanage before being transferred to a neighbouring orphanage for safety.

Neighbours were the first to respond to the incident, which occurred at around 6:00 a.m., and managed to put out the fire.

According to the area community administrator, Walter Atenya, preliminary investigations indicate that the fire may have been caused by an electrical fault.

Residents have faulted the county government for allegedly failing to dispatch fire engines in time, leading to significant losses.

Locals claim that county fire engines have not been operational for nearly four months. They further allege that when they called for assistance, they were informed that the fire engines lacked fuel and water.

Residents expressed frustration that despite the orphanage being located just three kilometres from the county headquarters, no fire engine arrived at the scene.

More to follow…