60 years Old School Collapses On Students &Teachers Killing One

The roof of a school building crashed on three pupils and a teacher of the school Ogijo area of Ogun State. According to Punch Newspaper, while a 10-year-old Primary five pupil, Fibian Lawal, died on the spot, the other victims were taken to some hospitals in the area and were said to be in critical conditions.

The five-block building was said to have been built around 1955 when the school was established.

It was also said the traditional ruler of the community and some other top government functionaries attended the school whose building had become dilapidated.

The old building, which had lost its window frames and doors, was hit by a storm which blew off the roof. A pupil of the school and classmate of late Fibian, Adijat Ohize, explained that the roof crashed on the pupils and the teacher.

She said, "We had finished school but we were all waiting for lesson when it began to rain. The other teachers left the school and their pupils, but our aunty did not leave. The rain was blowing into the classroom and our aunty said we should all run to a private school beside our school. I ran and got there, but as Fibian stepped out of the class, her shoes got stuck in the mud on the ground. She started struggling to get out."

Fibian’s younger brother, Okiki, 7, who also sustained injuries in the hand, said he was under a shade when he saw the late pupil struggling with the mud.

He said, "When the teacher asked us to go to the private school because of the rain, I first ran under a mango tree. I saw my sister struggling and I went to help her, but the roof fell on her. My hand was injured. I started shouting her name, but she did not answer me."

It was learnt that the teacher had also stepped outside and asked other pupils still in the class to join her when they all became trapped.

Shonuga said the tragedy could have been prevented if the community development association had responded on time to series of letters from the school asking for help to upgrade the building. Fibian was buried same day of her death.

Source: JBB