The dusty high school football field, which should have been the scene of some pre-Christmas cheer on Wednesday, now echoes the memories of tragedy.
It was here that 35 children died that morning, killed in an instant after thousands flocked to the promise of free food.
Children’s sandals, torn books and broken desks litter the grounds of the Islamic Secondary School in Bashorun, a suburb of Ibadan in southwestern Nigeria.
The everyday objects, left behind in panic, serve as an eerie reminder of those who were lost.
The chance to spread some cheer in these tough economic times must have been a good idea for those behind what was advertised as a fair.
The organizers – a local radio station partnered with a charity run by Queen Naomi Ogunwusi, the ex-wife of the Ooni of Ife, a revered traditional monarch – reportedly said they would distribute food parcels to the first 5,000 who showed up.
Some families traveled as long as 90 minutes, arriving before sunrise on Wednesday so as not to miss anything.
“Some people slept at the school gate the night before the event because they wanted to be among the first 5,000 to get into the carnival. Before 6:30 am, the site had recorded the estimated number,” said Lanre Kadiri, the Zonal Coordinator of the Nigerian Emergency Management Agency.
Resident Olumide Adeniyi met with grieving parents in the aftermath of the tragedy [BBC]
Residents of Bashorun told the BBC that more than 5,000 people soon gathered as many tried to force their way through the school gates. Parents are said to have tried to climb the fence surrounding the property to gain access.
Within hours, pandemonium reportedly swept through the crowd and some children were knocked down in the ensuing frenzy.
A local resident, Olumide Adeniyi, came by at 9am to see what was going on.
On his phone he recorded a distressed woman screaming that her child had died.
‘I’m done. Why did I even come here?’ she shouted as she stood at the school gate.
“A man came to the carnival with two children. He told me that one had died while the other was being treated for injuries at a nearby hospital,” Mr Adeniyi said.
The organizers are now in police custody. Police claim they were unaware of the event and were unable to advise on crowd control and security measures.
But people here seem reluctant to point the finger, believing the fair and the charity benefit plan were put together in good faith.
President Bola Tinubu has ordered an investigation.
“The safety and well-being of our children remains of the utmost importance. “No event should ever jeopardize their safety or take precedence over their lives,” he said.
But Nigeria’s poverty could mean such events will happen again.
Food and transport costs in Nigeria have more than tripled in the past eighteen months. The global inflation wave has been exacerbated by some of the government’s policies – designed to strengthen the economy in the long term – such as ending a fuel subsidy.
“People are suffering. It’s because of the situation in the country. It is hunger that made them come out en masse,” Adeniyi said.
[BBC]
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[Getty Images/BBC]
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