JOS (Nigeria), July 13 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 21 people were killed, mostly students, and scores more injured on Friday when a school in central Nigeria collapsed on pupils taking exams, the Red Cross and witnesses said.
Trapped students cried for help under the rubble as desperate parents looked for help after the Saint Academy school in Jos North district of Plateau State fell in on classrooms.
Rescue workers tried to reach the victims with heavy machinery and images from the scene showed crowds gathering round a caved-in concrete building and heaps of debris.
Red Cross spokesman Nuruddeen Hussain Magaji said there were “21 fatalities, and 69 injuries all in admission at various hospitals”.
Earlier, the National Emergency Management Agency said the two-storey building housing Saint Academy collapsed killing “several students.”
At least 15 rescued and injured students were admitted, officials at the Our Lady of Apostles Hospital said.
It was not immediately clear what caused the collapse but residents said it came after three days of heavy rains.
Building disasters are fairly common in Africa’s most populous nation because of lax enforcement of construction standards, negligence and low-quality materials. — NNN-AGENCIES
