Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

This aerial photo reveals a basic view of the city of Ibadan in Nigeria, where the occurrence occurred

A stampede at a school funfair in the southwestern Nigerian city of Ibadan has actually eliminated 35 kids and seriously hurt 6 others, police said on Thursday.

The hurt kids were receiving medical attention following the incident, which took location on Wednesday in Nigeria’s third-largest city, Oyo State Police Command said.

“8 persons have given that been jailed for their different participations”, cops representative Adewale Osifeso stated in a declaration.

Among those detained was the main sponsor of the event at the Basorun Islamic High School, which was arranged by the Wings Foundation and Agidigbo FM radio.

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

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Thursday in a statement “revealed extensive sadness over the tragic incident”.

He offered his “wholehearted condolences” to residents, state authorities and the “mourning families who have lost their precious kids”.

He advised the “Oyo State federal government to take every required step to prevent such a catastrophe from persisting”, the statement by the presidency included.

“Among the vital actions are a detailed review of all public occasions’ safety measures, stringent enforcement of safety regulations, and regular safety audits of occasion locations,” Tinubu added.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has seen several fatal stampedes in current months.

In March, 2 trainees passed away and 23 were injured after being squashed as thousands collected free of charge bags of rice handed out by regional authorities at Nasarawa State University, in main Nigeria.

Later that month, another stampede killed four women who had actually been waiting outside the office of a wealthy businessman in the northern city of Bauchi to collect 5,000 naira ($3.40) cash presents to help spend for food during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Witnesses said members of the crowd pushed to acquire the cash, triggering a stampede, as Nigeria came to grips with its worst recession in a generation.

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

“Our hearts remain with the households and liked ones affected by this disaster. May the souls of the left rest in peace,” Makinde stated.

“We sympathise with the moms and dads whose pleasure has actually suddenly been turned to mourning due to these deaths,” he included.