Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

This aerial picture shows a general view of the city of Ibadan in southwestern Nigeria, where the occurrence happened

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

The injured children were getting medical attention following the event, which occurred on Wednesday in Nigeria’s third-largest city, Oyo State Police Command said.

”8 individuals have given that been arrested for their various involvements”, cops spokesperson Adewale Osifeso stated in a statement.

Among those detained was the primary sponsor of the event at the Basorun Islamic High School, which was arranged 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 sadness over the tragic event”.

He offered his ”heartfelt condolences” to residents, state authorities and the ”mourning households who have actually lost their cherished kids”.

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

”Among the important actions are a detailed review of all public occasions’ precaution, rigorous enforcement of safety policies, and routine security audits of occasion locations,” Tinubu added.

– ’Rest in peace’ –

Nigeria has actually seen a number of deadly stampedes in current months.

In March, 2 students died and 23 were injured after being squashed as thousands gathered free of charge bags of rice distributed by local authorities at Nasarawa State University, in main Nigeria.

Later that month, another stampede eliminated 4 females who had been waiting outside the workplace of a rich business owner in the northern city of Bauchi to collect 5,000 naira ($3.40) cash gifts to help pay for food throughout the month of Ramadan.

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

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

”Our hearts remain with the families and loved ones affected by this tragedy. May the souls of the left rest in peace,” Makinde stated.

”We sympathise with the parents whose delight has all of a sudden been turned to mourning due to these deaths,” he included.