School fire kills 12 girls in Idodi, Iringa

A fire that started when a student at a central Tanzanian girls' school tried to study in candle light has killed 12 students, police said on Sunday. The Saturday night incident at Idodi Secondary School in Iringa region, about 460 km (285 miles) southwest of the commercial capital Dar es Salaam, razed a dormitory to the ground. "It burnt one dormitory completely and 12 students were killed. Another 20 have been injured," Iringa Regional Police Commander Evarist Mangala said. "We're still investigating (the cause), but it looks like it's from a candle lit by a student who was trying to study at night." Mangala said the school had 461 students.)

WANAFUNZI 12 wa shule ya sekondari ya Idodi iliyopo Tarafa ya Idodi, Iringa vijijini,wamekufa moto baada ya bweni lao kuteketea kwa moto .

Wanafunzi hao ambao wote ni wasichana, wamepoteza maisha usiku wa kuamkia leo (Agosti 23) baada ya chumba kimoja wapo cha bweni la wasichana (Nyerere Hostel), kushika moto kisha bweni zima kuteketea.
Katika tukio hilo la kusikitisha, wanafunzi wengine 22 wamejeruhiwa ambapo 14 wamelazwa katika hospitali ya Mkoa wa Iringa na wanane wamelazwa katika kituo cha afya cha Idodi. Wanafunzi wengine 427 wamenusurika kupotekeza maisha yao baada ya jitihada za walimu na wananchi waliowahi kufika katika eneo la tukio kuanza kuvunja madirisha ili kuwawezesha wanafunzi hao kupata sehemu za kupita na hatimaye kuokoa maisha yao .

Bweni hilo lina vyumba 25 na lina uwezo wa kulaza wanafunzi 461 na kwamba wakati moto unashika chumba kimoja wapo, wanafunzi hao walikuwemo kwenye bweni hilo. Taarifa zilizothibitishwa na uongozi wa shule hiyo zimesema kulikuwapo na mifupa ya marehemu hao katika lango kubwa la kutokea na inadaiwa kuwa wanafunzi hao huenda walikufa kabla kwa kukanyagwa na wenzao katika harakati za kujiokoa.

Afisa elimu wa Mkoa wa Iringa Salum Maduhu na Kamanda wa Polisi Mkoa huo, Evarist Mangalla zinasema kuwa chanzo cha moto huo ni moto wa mshumaa kushika godoro na kuanza kuwaka chumba hicho.
Mshumaa huo alikuwa amewasha mwanafunzi mmoja, Naomi Mnyali wakati akijisomea lakini alishikwa na usingizi na kuuacha ukiwaka kabla ya kushika kwenye godoro, hata hivyo mwanafunzi huyo amenusurika. Kwa kawaida wanafunzi hutakiwa kuzima taa za umeme wa generator ifikapo saa sita usiku lakini mwanafunzi huyo aliendelea kujisomea kwa kutumia mshumaa.

Taarifa hii imepatikana toka TBC One na mwandishi wa HabariLeo Frank leonard aliyepo Iringa