School fire kills over 70 children in India's Tamil Nadu state

[OneBlueSky]

By Smita Prakash
channelnewsasia.com

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southasia/view/96037/1/.html

NEW DELHI : A fire in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu has killed over 70 schoolchildren, and it is feared the death toll will rise as more than 30 others were badly burnt.

The blaze at a girl's primary school has been extinguished and rescuers are searching for more bodies and injured students.

The fire broke out at around 11am in the kitchen of the school in Kumbakonam town, Tamil Nadu.

The flames quickly spread to the thatched roof of the adjacent building, where 900 students - aged between 5 and 9 - were gathered.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southasia/view/96037/1/.html

[maddezmom]

1. AP headline: India Fire Kills at Least 80 Children

By M. LAKSHMAN, Associated Press Writer

KUMBAKONAM, India - A fire raged through a thatched-roof school in southern India on Friday, killing at least 80 children and injuring more than 100 after their teachers fled. The children were trapped inside, a witness said, and blackened bodies were piled two and three deep on the floor.


Police blamed school officials for negligence and arrested principal Pulavar Palanichamy. The death toll could rise, since 15 children were in critical condition.


More than 30 of the victims were burned to death, while the others were killed in a stampede, said M.B. Venkatesh, who lived near the Lord Krishna Middle School in the town of Kumbakonam.


Another witness said the school's main door was locked when the blaze broke out, but was unlocked by the escaping teachers. Most primary schools in India keep the main door or gate locked to keep young children from running out into the street.

~snip~
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=516&ncid=716&e=2&u=/ap/20040716/ap_on_re_as/india_school_fire

Very, very sad.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

2. This is heartbreaking...

I feel for their families. :cry:

[KamaAina]

3. It can't happen here... whoops, spoke too soon...

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2004/07/16/international1429EDT0623.DTL

The tragedy exposed the downside of India's "economic reforms" program, which saw a proliferation of ill-equipped private schools as the government cut spending on education to curtail its budget deficit.

Most private schools are in crowded buildings that often lack basic safety measures such as fire alarms and sprinkler systems. They rarely have playgrounds, athletic fields or open space.

Sound familiar? How do you say "No Child Left Behind" in Tamil?

[BeyondGeography]

4. My sentiments exactly

Another dark chapter in the bogus history of privatization:

To continue:

"At the Lord Krishna Middle School, the long, narrow, windowless classrooms each had only one exit. On the third floor, the main hall was crowded with students studying because of lack of classroom space."

[TahitiNut]

5. Privatization and deregulation ... all for the sake of GREED.

Life is cheap under the "New World Order."

[maddezmom]

6. pray or do what you do...watching story now on CNN

:(

[sandraj]

7. I saw the CNN report too - very sad and tragic

An unbearable loss for those poor parents and families.