Nigeria School Fair Stampede Kills 35 Children

This aerial photograph shows a basic view of the city of Ibadan in southwestern Nigeria, where the incident took place

A stampede at a school funfair in the southwestern Nigerian city of Ibadan has eliminated 35 children and seriously injured six others, authorities said on Thursday.

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

“8 persons have given that been detained for their numerous participations”, police spokesperson Adewale Osifeso stated in a statement.

Among those detained was the main sponsor of the occasion at the Basorun Islamic High School, which was organised by the 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 extensive sadness over the awful incident”.

He offered his “sincere condolences” to residents, state authorities and the “grieving families who have lost their beloved children”.

He prompted the “Oyo State federal government to take every required procedure to prevent such a tragedy from persisting”, the declaration by the presidency included.

“Among the essential actions are a comprehensive review of all public events’ safety procedures, rigorous enforcement of security regulations, and regular security audits of occasion locations,” Tinubu included.

– ‘Rest in peace’ –

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

In March, 2 students passed away and 23 were harmed after being squashed as thousands collected free of charge bags of rice handed out by local authorities at Nasarawa State University, in main Nigeria.

Later that month, another stampede killed four females who had been waiting outside the workplace of a rich business person in the northern city of Bauchi to collect 5,000 naira ($3.40) cash gifts to assist spend for food throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Witnesses said members of the crowd pushed to acquire the cash, triggering a stampede, as Nigeria came to grips with 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 stay 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 moms and dads whose happiness has actually suddenly been turned to mourning due to these deaths,” he added.