The school authorities at St. Johns Comprehensive SS in Kaliiro Sub-county, have indefinitely closed the school after a fire gutted the physics laboratory and boy’s dormitory.
The fire that started in the wee hours of Wednesday morning in a dormitory housing over 60 Senior one learners spread fast, destroying a physics lab as well.
Though no fatalities or injuries were reported in the incident, properties including beds, books, clothes, scholastic materials and lab equipment suffered damages.
The headteacher, Kevin Kyolaba, suspects that the fire was started by arsonists for malicious purposes. Kyolaba says they have decided to close the school for two more weeks while police carry out thorough investigations into the exact cause of the fire.
The incident comes just three weeks after the rowdy students destroyed school properties in a vicious strike. Students damaged classrooms, offices, utility supply lines, and perimeter walls, in protest of poor quality food and the high-handedness of teachers.
The students also vandalized equipment in the science and computer laboratories and furniture.
The Lyantonde District Security Committee and the School Board of Governors resolved to send all students home for one week while their parents paid for repairs and replacement of all the destroyed properties.
Police placed the school under security surveillance to prevent the recurrence of a similar occurrence, only to register a fire outbreak.
