A fire in a school in central Kenya has killed 17 students, a police spokeswoman said on Friday, following media reports that they had been burnt beyond recognition, Paralel.Az reports citing Reuters.

More rescuers were on their way to the Hillside Endarasha Academy in Nyeri, the spokeswoman, Resila Onyango, said in a broadcast on Kenya's Hot 96 FM radio, and authorities would provide details later.

"We have lost 17 pupils in the fire incident while 14 are injured ...," Onyango told Reuters by telephone. "Our team is at the scene at the scene at the moment."

The fire had burnt the students beyond recognition, Citizen Television said earlier.

Nine students were killed in Sept 2017 in a fire at a school in the capital, Nairobi.