A dormitory fire ​in Kenya's central region of ‌Nakuru killed at least 10 students, media said on Thursday, citing a ​senior police official.

Emergency rescue teams ​were searching the dormitory at ⁠Utumishi Girls Academy, where the ​fire started at about 1 a.m. (2200 ​GMT), radio station Capital FM said, citing Samuel Ndanyi, the regional police commander.

"It ​is a distressing and saddening ​situation," county police official Masoud Mwinyi told ‌distraught ⁠parents outside the school, said another broadcaster, Citizen Television.

Firefighters and police officers had fanned out to ​control the ​blaze ⁠and evacuate other students, Capital FM added. The ​cause of the fire is ​not ⁠yet known.

In 2024, a fire killed 21 students at a ⁠primary ​boarding school in nearby ​Nyeri county.