Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

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

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

“8 individuals have actually considering that been jailed for their different involvements”, authorities spokesperson Adewale Osifeso stated 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 included.

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

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

He advised the “Oyo State government to take every essential measure to avoid such a catastrophe from persisting”, the declaration by the presidency added.

“Among the necessary actions are a detailed evaluation of all public occasions’ precaution, stringent enforcement of safety regulations, and regular security audits of event locations,” Tinubu added.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has seen numerous deadly stampedes in current months.

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

Later that month, another stampede killed 4 females who had been waiting outside the office of a wealthy entrepreneur in the northern city of Bauchi to gather 5,000 naira ($3.40) money gifts to assist spend for food during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Witnesses stated members of the crowd pressed to get hold of the cash, triggering a stampede, as Nigeria faced 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 stay with the families 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 happiness has unexpectedly been turned to grieving due to these deaths,” he added.