Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

This aerial picture shows a basic view of the city of Ibadan in southwestern Nigeria, where the incident took place

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

The hurt kids were receiving medical attention following the event, which happened on Wednesday in Nigeria’s third-largest city, Oyo State Police Command stated.

“8 individuals have actually given that been apprehended for their various participations”, authorities representative Adewale Osifeso stated in a statement.

Among those apprehended was the primary sponsor of the event 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 “revealed profound unhappiness over the terrible event”.

He used his “heartfelt condolences” to residents, state authorities and the “grieving families who have lost their precious kids”.

He advised the “Oyo State government to take every needed measure to prevent such a catastrophe from returning”, the statement by the presidency included.

“Among the important actions are an extensive review of all public occasions’ safety procedures, stringent enforcement of security guidelines, and routine safety audits of occasion places,” Tinubu included.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has actually seen numerous deadly stampedes in current months.

In March, 2 students passed away and 23 were hurt after being crushed as thousands collected for totally free bags of rice given out by regional authorities at Nasarawa State University, in central Nigeria.

Later that month, another stampede killed 4 ladies who had actually been waiting outside the office of a rich business owner in the northern city of Bauchi to collect 5,000 naira ($3.40) to assist spend for food throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Witnesses stated members of the crowd pushed to get hold of the cash, triggering a stampede, as Nigeria faced its worst financial crisis in a generation.

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

“Our hearts stay with the households and liked ones affected by this catastrophe. May the souls of the departed rest in peace,” Makinde stated.

“We sympathise with the moms and dads whose happiness has actually all of a sudden been turned to mourning due to these deaths,” he added.