Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

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

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

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

“8 persons have since been apprehended for their numerous participations”, cops representative Adewale Osifeso stated in a declaration.

Among those detained 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 added.

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

He offered his “wholehearted acknowledgements” to locals, state authorities and the “mourning households who have actually lost their cherished children”.

He advised the “Oyo State federal government to take every necessary step to avoid such a disaster from repeating”, the declaration by the presidency included.

“Among the necessary actions are a detailed evaluation of all public events’ precaution, rigorous enforcement of security policies, and regular security audits of event locations,” Tinubu included.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has actually seen several lethal stampedes in current months.

In March, two students died and 23 were injured after being crushed as thousands collected totally free bags of rice distributed by local authorities at Nasarawa State University, in central Nigeria.

Later that month, another stampede eliminated four women who had been waiting outside the office of a wealthy entrepreneur in the northern city of Bauchi to gather 5,000 naira ($3.40) cash gifts to assist spend for food during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Witnesses stated members of the crowd pushed to acquire the money, triggering a stampede, as Nigeria faced its worst economic crisis in a generation.

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde had shared his condolences 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 said.

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