A fire that broke out at the girls’ dormitory of Wa Islamic Senior High School in the Upper West Region has displaced some 138 students.

The fire, which initially engulfed one of the houses in the girls’ dormitory, prompted the deployment of two fire tenders from the Ghana National Fire Service.

This is the third time the same dormitory has been destroyed by fire.

According to the Headmaster of the school, Alhassan Abudu Bafaara, the fire started around 7:30 pm in one of the rooms and quickly spread to six rooms.

“I dashed back and saw the inferno. It was already high. 138 girls in six rooms were affected. Almost everything was gone,” he said.

Although emergency responders managed to bring the fire under control, preliminary assessments indicate that six dormitories were affected, leaving 138 students displaced.

The affected students were safely evacuated as the fire spread through parts of the accommodation block. No casualties or injuries have so far been reported.

The cause of the fire remains unknown, with officials expected to begin investigations to determine what sparked the blaze.

The Fire Commander said they are investigating possible causes including electrical faults, power fluctuations, and illegal use of electrical gadgets such as iPads and box irons.

“We know for sure they have these iPads… someone might ask, how do they charge them? We also know the use of these box irons. Some of them use them to cook.”

The extent of damage to students’ personal belongings is also yet to be fully assessed.

The Wa Municipal Chief Executive, Nura Issah Danwnaa, who visited the scene, said the immediate solution is to convert classrooms into dormitories.

“We will resort to the classrooms as an immediate measure. We also have an uncompleted block. We need to see the contractor to fast-track the work so that we could accommodate them temporarily.”