Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

This aerial photograph shows a general view of the city of Ibadan in southwestern Nigeria, where the incident occurred

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

The hurt children were getting medical attention following the occurrence, 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 participations”, police spokesperson Adewale Osifeso said in a declaration.

Among those apprehended 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 actually opened a probe, Osifeso included.

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

He used his “wholehearted condolences” to residents, state authorities and the “grieving households who have lost their beloved children”.

He prompted the “Oyo State federal government to take every essential measure to prevent such a tragedy from persisting”, the declaration by the presidency added.

“Among the important actions are a detailed evaluation of all public events’ precaution, rigorous enforcement of security guidelines, and routine safety audits of event locations,” Tinubu added.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has actually seen a number of lethal stampedes in recent months.

In March, 2 students died and 23 were injured after being crushed as thousands collected totally free bags of rice handed out by local authorities at Nasarawa State University, in central Nigeria.

Later that month, another stampede eliminated 4 females who had actually been waiting outside the office of a wealthy business person in the northern city of Bauchi to 5,000 naira ($3.40) cash gifts to help 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 grappled with its worst financial 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 families and liked ones affected by this catastrophe. May the souls of the left rest in peace,” Makinde said.

“We sympathise with the parents whose pleasure has unexpectedly been turned to mourning due to these deaths,” he included.