A fire has ripped through a boys’ dormitory at Kadjebi-Asato Senior High School in the Oti Region, destroying students’ belongings and sending several teenagers to hospital after they collapsed while trying to escape the blaze.
The fire started mid-morning on Tuesday and spread quickly through one of the dormitory blocks before teachers and community members managed to bring it under control. The school has no nearby functioning fire tender, a situation authorities say made it impossible for firefighters to respond effectively.
Officials say at least five students were admitted at hospitals in Dodi-Papase, Jasikan and Kadjebi after collapsing from panic, smoke and exhaustion. Many others were treated and discharged.
No deaths were recorded, but dozens of students have been displaced after losing mattresses, books, uniforms and other belongings. School officials say nothing in the affected dormitory room was salvaged.
Witnesses described a chaotic scene as students scrambled out of the building. “The fire spread so fast. People were shouting and some were fainting,” one student told local reporters.
The cause of the fire has not yet been established. The Ghana National Fire Service has begun investigations, though officers say the absence of a working fire engine in the district hampered their response. The Kadjebi fire tender has reportedly been out of operation for about two years.
Education authorities who visited the school have begun assessing the damage and working on temporary accommodation for the affected students.
The incident has raised concerns about safety standards and emergency preparedness in boarding schools across the country. Local leaders have renewed calls for government to restore fire-fighting equipment in the district, warning that the next incident could be far worse.
