Students killed in school fire in Uganda

 BBC

Eleven students at a boys boarding school in Rakai district in southern Uganda died on Sunday night after fire gutted their dormitories, police say.

At least 20 others from St Bernard Secondary School suffered from severe burns.

Henry Nsubuga, headmaster of the school, said he suspected some students who had been expelled recently were behind the "heinous act".

"The arsonists first locked the doors of the dormitories before setting them on fire. Even when the rescue [team] came it was difficult to evacuate the students inside the dormitories. Some would have been saved but they died of suffocation," Mr Nsubuga said.

"Some bodies were burnt beyond recognition and police have recommended a DNA test to establish their identities," he added.

Area police chief Ben Nuwamanya told news agency AFP that the cause of the fire had yet to be established, and that three people, including a guard at the school, had been arrested for questioning.