As authorities opened an investigation into the trigger on Thursday, at least 17 children were killed in a blaze that broke out in an Islamist school in northern Nigeria, according to the country’s disaster response agency. The National Emergency Management Agency reported in a speech that about 100 children were present at the college when the fire erupted on Wednesday in Zamfara state’s Kaura Namoda area. Seventeen babies were seriously injured and receiving care at various institutions, according to the organization.
What was the cause of the hearth was not immediately known. Initial findings, however, suggest that the fire was caused by a hoard of sticks used for dental health, locally known as “kara”, which were gathered in the vicinity of the class, the company said.
Bola Tinubu, the president of Nigeria, pleaded with the victims ‘ families and urged schools to give utmost importance to children’s safety.
Dangerous school fires are not uncommon in Nigeria, but recent incidents have been attributed to the government’s failure to follow the recommendations made in the healthy college initiative, which was put forth in 2014 to defend schools and students.
Tinubu directed governmental bodies to check conformity with the order.
Last month, an improvised explosive machine detonated at a university on the outskirts of Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, killing two people and injuring two others.
