Bomb Blast At Secondary School in Yobe Kills 47 Students, With Many Injured

A bomb blast this morning in Nigeria has claimed the lives of about 47 children and injured several at the Government Science Technical College, Potiskum, Yobe State. AP reported that most of the bodies taken to the hospital were between the ages of 11 and 20, according to a morgue attendant.

A teacher told AFP:

"The students had gathered for the morning assembly when something exploded in their midst with a thunderous sound‎ at exactly 7:50 am (0650 GMT). The explosion has affected many students but I can't say how many because we are now evacuating the victims to the hospital which is just 100 metres (yards) away."

Musa Ibrahim Yahaya — a 17-year-old student at the school who was being treated at the hospital for head wounds told AP;

"We were waiting for the principal to address us, around 7:30 a.m., when we heard a deafening sound and I was blown off my feet, people started screaming and running, I saw blood all over my body."

A medic at the Potiskum General Hospital where the victims were taken said scores of students had
been admitted.

"We are still receiving casualties from the school which is a stone's throw from here. Our priority now is to save the injured, so we have not started a headcount of the victims."

A local resident, Adamu Alkassim, said there was confusion in and around the school but the scene was a mass of abandoned footwear and blood. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack but Boko Haram militants are likely to be the prime suspects.

This is the press statement released on the bombing by Reuben Abati, the Media Aide to the president. He wrote;

President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan extends heartfelt commiserations to the Government and people of Yobe state on the death of many students in a bomb attack on Potiskum earlier today.

President Jonathan also conveys his deepest sympathies to all parents who lost their beloved children in the heinous attack on the Government Science Secondary School which appears to have been carried out by a suicide bomber.

The President condemns the dastardly murder of the students on their school’s assembly ground as they prepared to begin another week of study in pursuit of a better life for themselves and their families.

He assures the grieving parents and people of Yobe state that no matter how long it takes, the Federal Government will ensure that all those responsible for the senseless murder of so many promising youngsters and the continuing acts of terrorism across the country are brought to justice and made to pay for their atrocious crimes.

The President similarly assures all Nigerians that in spite of seeming setbacks, his Administration remains fully committed to winning the war against insurgency and terrorism.

Nigeria, President Jonathan affirms, will ultimately overcome the current security challenges imposed by domestic terrorists and their foreign allies, with the dedication of its Armed Forces and national security agencies, as well as the continued support and cooperation of all patriotic citizens.