By: Agency report
No fewer than 17 students died and more than 200 others were trapped after a school building collapsed in Nigeria’s central Plateau state, local officials say.
The Saints Academy, a secondary school in Jos, collapsed on Friday, while students were writing their third term examination.
Trapped pupils were calling for help from under the rubble, AFP reported, with parents frantically searching for their children.
The Plateau Commissioner for Information and Communication, Musa Ashoms, has confirmed that about 200 students were trapped in the Jos school building that collapsed in Jos.
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Ashoms, who visited the scene in the company of other commissioners, including that of secondary education, said that the school had a total population of about 400.
The commissioner said that part of the school that collapsed was accommodating about 200 students.
“The collapsed building has resulted in casualties, and injured students are still being evacuated to hospitals.
“We cannot however, ascertain the exact number of casualties until the evacuation is completed
“The emergency workers are doing a lot in the rescue efforts.
“The Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, has urged the medical personnel in the hospitals to ensure that they save the lives of survivors.
“They should not ask for money or anything because this is an emergency situation,” he said.
The commissioner, however, said that the incident underscored the imperative of order 003 of the state government, which was meant to enforce the implementation of the Greater Jos Master Plan, to prevent such unfortunate incidences.
According to him, the collapsed school building, which was built in a waterlogged area, clearly did not meet construction standards.
The National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) said “the exact number of deaths is still being confirmed”.
Media reports say at least 17 students were killed. In a post on X, Nema said more than 40 trapped students were rescued and taken to local hospitals.
In a post on X, Nema said more than 40 trapped students were rescued and taken to local hospitals.
The school is believed to have more than 1,000 pupils.
Local resident, Abel Fuandai, told the BBC that his friend’s son had been killed and said “the scale of the tragedy is frightening”.
He said rescue workers and emergency officials were racing to save those trapped and using excavators to dig through the rubble.
The cause of the collapse is not known but residents said it came after three days of heavy rains in Plateau.
Speaking from hospital, injured student Wulliya Ibrahim told AFP: “I entered the class not more than five minutes, when I heard a sound, and the next thing is I found myself here.
“We are many in the class, we are writing our exams,” he said.
Resident Chika Obioha said he had seen a number of dead bodies and that dozens of people had been rescued.
“Everyone is helping out to see if we can rescue more people,” he said.
There have been several major building collapses in Nigeria in recent years, with observers blaming a mix of bad workmanship, poor quality materials and corruption.
In 2021, at least 45 people were killed when a high-rise building under construction collapsed in a wealthy Lagos neighbourhood.
