Uganda school fire kills 10 sleeping children

A fire destroyed a boarding school dormitory in western Uganda , killing at least 10 sleeping students, police officials said Friday. But one police official said at least 12 students had died. The blaze started late Thursday at a primary boarding school in Kabarole, 320 kilometers (199 miles) west of Kampala . It has been extinguished, but police and firefighters searched for more survivors and bodies, police spokesman Patrick Onyango said. There were 70 students in the dormitory, which is part of the larger school building, Kararole regional police commander Paddy Musana said. Most of the students were evacuated, but some were left inside the building and not all have been accounted for, he said.

Photo: Uganda school fire kills 10 sleeping children

An unattended candle may have sparked the fire, Onyango said. "The school had no power last night (Thursday) so the students were reading by candlelight. It seems one of the candles wasn't put out and set fire to a bedsheet," he said. Onyango said 12 died and the victims ranged in age from 7 to 13, adding that one child was hospitalized with injuries.

Musana, however, said that 10 students died in the fire and no student had been hospitalized. It was not immediately clear why the two police officials had conflicting information, reports the AP.

N.U.