Plateau school collapse: Grieving mother recounts late son’s memories

Plateau school building collapse

A bereaved mother identified as Blessing Onovo recalls the fond memories of her late 15-year-old son, Chidera, who died after his school building collapsed last Friday, July 12, 2024, in Jos, Plateau State.

Chidera attended Saint Academy located in the Busa Buji community, Jos North Local Government Area of the state, with his younger sister, Chisom.

In an interview with the BBC, as reported on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, the grieving mother recalled how her son, Chidera was caring for her and his siblings.

She said, “He saved up his lunch money to buy biscuits to share with his siblings and he was always the one who noticed my moods and would ask, ‘Mummy are you fine?'”

Chidera had found a passion in drawing, but unfortunately, the young boy who left home for school early Friday with his younger sister never returned.

[Credit: BBC]

His father, Chike, was “relieved” after Chidera’s sister was pulled out from under the rubble but at the same time, he wondered the whereabouts of his first child.

“I saw my daughter Chisom being dragged out. I was relieved, but I kept shouting ‘Where is Chidera, my son?’

“It took about an hour before an excavator came,” Chike lamented.

The boy’s body was later found in his classroom on the first floor, the BBC reports.

The school’s two-storey building collapsed at about 8:30 am, claiming 22 persons while about 154 were trapped under the rubble before they were evacuated to various hospitals.

The unfortunate incident happened while students and teachers were in their respective classes.

According to the investigative panel set up by the Federal Government, the physical observation of the building looked distressed as weak materials were used for the building.

Another parent, Victor Dennis, 43, lost his son, Emmanuel, to the incident. The boy’s lifeless body was found at a local morgue the next day, Saturday, July 13.

“My boy was a good boy. He didn’t deserve to die. They killed my son. He didn’t do anything wrong. He just went to school to learn,” Dennis stated.

Dennis holds a picture of his son, Emmanuel [Credit: BBC]

The report noted that while Emmanuel was being buried, his mother remained “inconsolable” as she grieved her son’s death at home, adding that several people were involved in the rescue operation, and some others voluntarily donated blood across hospitals where the survivors were admitted.

In an interview by one of our correspondents, some of the survivors, while on their hospital beds, recounted that the building suddenly collapsed while they were having classes, stating that the loud noise that accompanied the collapse felt like the world had come to an end.

An SS1 student noted that a teacher shunned an observation raised by one of the students, saying, “I am an SS1 student. Our teacher was teaching us in the class, and he was writing on the board when the building suddenly collapsed on our heads. The noise was so loud, and it was as if the world was about to end. Everywhere was dark, and I did not know where I was as the debris covered me. I found it hard to breathe at all because the decking just covered me.

“Before the building collapsed, I heard one of the students telling a teacher that the building was shaking but he asked the student to shut up and enter the class. Shortly after sitting down, the building caved in.”

Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, had ordered the closure of the collapsed school and the arrest of artisanal miners operating around residential areas in the state.

The state government also declared a three-day mourning period following the sad incident.

Also, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa called for an immediate investigation into the building collapse, noting that anyone found culpable must be brought to justice.