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 took place

A stampede at a school funfair in the 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 event, which happened on Wednesday in Nigeria’s third-largest city, Oyo State Police Command said.

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

Among those detained was the main 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 added.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Thursday in a declaration “revealed profound unhappiness over the awful occurrence”.

He offered his “sincere acknowledgements” to locals, state authorities and the “grieving households who have actually lost their beloved kids”.

He prompted the “Oyo State government to take every necessary procedure to prevent such a catastrophe from repeating”, the statement by the presidency added.

“Among the vital actions are a detailed evaluation of all public events’ precaution, strict enforcement of security regulations, and routine security audits of occasion places,” Tinubu added.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has seen a number of deadly stampedes in recent months.

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

Later that month, another stampede killed four ladies who had been waiting outside the workplace of a rich entrepreneur in the northern city of Bauchi to collect 5,000 naira ($3.40) money presents to help spend for food during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Witnesses stated members of the crowd pressed to acquire the cash, triggering a stampede, as Nigeria grappled with its worst economic crisis in a generation.

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

“Our hearts remain with the families and liked ones impacted by this catastrophe. May the souls of the left rest in peace,” Makinde said.

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