Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

This aerial picture shows a general view of the city of Ibadan in southwestern Nigeria, where the incident occurred

A stampede at a school funfair in the southwestern Nigerian city of Ibadan has killed 35 children and seriously hurt six others, cops stated on Thursday.

The injured kids were getting medical attention following the incident, which occurred on Wednesday in Nigeria’s third-largest city, Oyo State Police Command stated.

“8 individuals have actually because been apprehended for their different participations”, police spokesperson Adewale Osifeso stated in a declaration.

Among those apprehended was the primary sponsor of the occasion at the Basorun Islamic High School, which was organised by the Wings Foundation and Agidigbo FM radio.

The Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department has opened a probe, Osifeso included.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Thursday in a statement “expressed extensive sadness over the awful occurrence”.

He used his “genuine condolences” to locals, state authorities and the “mourning families who have lost their beloved kids”.

He prompted the “Oyo State government to take every essential procedure to avoid such a tragedy from persisting”, the declaration by the presidency added.

“Among the essential actions are a thorough evaluation of all public occasions’ precaution, stringent enforcement of security guidelines, and routine security audits of occasion places,” Tinubu included.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has actually seen numerous lethal stampedes in current months.

In March, 2 students died and 23 were hurt after being squashed as thousands collected totally free bags of rice handed out by at Nasarawa State University, in main Nigeria.

Later that month, another stampede eliminated 4 women who had been waiting outside the office of a rich business person in the northern city of Bauchi to collect 5,000 naira ($3.40) money gifts to assist pay for food during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Witnesses stated members of the crowd pushed to get hold of the cash, triggering a stampede, as Nigeria grappled with its worst recession in a generation.

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde had actually shared his condolences for the Ibadan victims on X on Wednesday.

“Our hearts stay with the households and liked ones impacted by this tragedy. May the souls of the left rest in peace,” Makinde said.

“We sympathise with the moms and dads whose delight has all of a sudden been turned to grieving due to these deaths,” he included.