30/05/2026
Cecilia Wanjiku: The Girl Who Ran Into Fire to Save Her Sisters
In the chaos of May 28, when flames ripped through Meline Waithera Dormitory at Utumishi Girls Academy, Cecilia Wanjiku did not run out. She ran in.
Witnesses say the Form Three student heard screams from the upper floor as smoke choked the two-storey building. While others scrambled for the exits, Cecilia grabbed a blanket, soaked it with water, and cut through the raging fire toward the cubicles where 135 double-decker beds were filled with sleeping girls.
Her classmates recall her voice cutting through the panic: “Follow me, low, low!” She pulled younger students from burning beds, shielding them with her body as embers fell around them. The heat was unbearable. The first floor collapsed in flames, but Cecilia kept pushing toward the back cubicles until the fire trapped her.
She never made it out.
Cecilia Wanjiku died trying to save others. She is among the 16 students who succumbed to burns in the tragedy that has left Gilgil grieving. At 16, she chose courage over fear, sisterhood over survival.
At Utumishi today, her name is spoken in whispers and prayers. A girl who saw fire and chose to become the way out for others.
Rest in peace heroine
