Many of the victims were burnt beyond recognition, witnesses say. There are fears that the death toll may rise, police said.
"I instruct relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate this horrific incident. Those responsible will be held to account," Ruto said in a post on his X account
Authorities have cordoned off the school, Kenya Red Cross said on X.
The cause of the fire on Thursday night at Hillside Endarasha Primary in Nyeri county was being investigated, police spokesperson Resila Onyango said.
Frequent incidents
“We are investigating the cause and will take necessary action,” she said.There have been a series of school fires in Kenya in recent years, many of them which have turned out to be arson.
At least 10 students were killed in Sept 2017 in a fire at a school in the capital, Nairobi, that the government attributed to arson.
In 2001, 58 schoolboys were killed in a dormitory fire at Kyanguli Secondary School outside Nairobi. In 2012, eight students were killed at a school in Homa Bay County in western Kenya.
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