Fire victims' parents to wait longer for DNA test results

Families of the Utumishi Girls fire victims break down after viewing the bodies at the Naivasha Sub-County Hospital Funeral Home. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

Parents of the 16 girls who died in the tragic dormitory fire at Utumishi Girls Academy in Gilgil, Nakuru County, will have to wait longer for DNA results before the bodies are released for burial.

Without giving a specific timeline, the government appealed for patience and understanding from relatives as the identification process continues, noting that the analysis could take several days.

The announcement came as a team of government pathologists conducted post-mortems on all 16 bodies.

Addressing the media after the autopsies, senior government officials ruled out releasing even those bodies that had been positively identified by relatives until DNA analysis had been completed for all the victims.

According to government chemist forensic DNA analyst Joseph Kimani, the process will take time.

Speaking at the Naivasha Sub-County Hospital mortuary after the post-mortems, Kimani appealed to families to remain patient.

Families of the Utumishi Girls fire victims break down after viewing the bodies at the Naivasha Sub-County Hospital Funeral Home. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

“We have collected DNA samples from both the victims and their relatives, and we are asking for patience as this process takes time,” he said.

Government pathologist Dr Titus Ngurungu said that while some families had identified bodies that were partially burnt, DNA testing would still be required for all victims.

“We have established the cause of death as severe burns, and the next stage is identification through DNA testing,” he said.

Earlier, the National Police Service said it had identified seven students allegedly linked to the fire incident.

In a statement signed by Director of Criminal Investigations John Marete, police said six of the students had been arrested, while officers were pursuing a seventh student who had earlier been released to her parents.