KUALA LUMPUR, Sep 14 – A fire that blocked the only exit to an Islamic religious (tahfiz) school dormitory killed twenty-four students and two teachers, who were trapped behind barred windows, mostly teenagers, at Jalan Datuk Keramat here this morning. TThe Star news portal cited the Fire and Rescue Department receiving a call about the fire at 5.41am.
Initial counts put the death toll at 25, but police later revised that down by one. The police clarified the death toll later and said 24 people had died, comprising 22 students aged between 13 and 17 and two teachers. Ten people were taken to hospital, and four are thought to have serious injuries. In Islamic tahfiz schools – where children study the Koran – students often live at the school.
“Based on our initial investigations, the position the victims were found in indicated that they tried to escape through the windows but were stopped due to the fixed grilles on the windows The police were still investigating what caused the fire but that it likely was caused by short circuit or a lit mosquito repellent coil,” fire and rescue department operations deputy director Soiman Jahid said.
TThe Star news portal report the school could have been operating against government regulations, because its fire safety permit application was allegedly still pending. Malaysia’s urban wellbeing and housing minister said there had been 29 fire incidents at tahfiz schools in the country since 2015. The Fire and Rescue Department was previously reported to have raised concerns about fire safety measures at private and unregistered tahfiz schools. — PN
