NIGERIA 🇳🇬
Hub for all former army children and military cantonment secondary schools in Maryland, Lagos OUR PURPOSE
The Acss Alumni was borne as a result of the
2002 IKEJA CANTONMENT BOMB BLAST and the resolution by the Students of the schools of both the Military/Army Cantonment Secondary schools situated in the said Cantonment. The famed story reads:
Sunday,January 27, 2002 was a gloomy da
y for many families surrounding the military cantonment in Lagos State, Nigeria. The trouble, which eventually sent many to their graves prematurely, started around 5pm when there was a sudden explosion, akin to that of an earthquake. The loud bang shook the entire Lagos, a city of over 24 million population, as if bombs were detonated behind the windows of each of the residents. Being an unprecedented occurrence and not knowing what was actually happening, people, understandably, started running helter-skelter. And whilst scampering for safety, they heard several other explosions, of same intensity, and in the imagination of many, it was as if another war had started. The vibration shattered windows, roofs and brought down buildings several kilometres away. Unknown to many, the explosion, which sounded for about seven times and almost ripped the metropolitan city apart, was coming from Ikeja Military Cantonment, where our alma mata was situated some blocks away. It was later gathered that some high calibre bombs kept underground at the military facility were not well stored, and when expired, they were not tactically denoted: which led to the accidental discharge of the bombs. Another version said there was a fire outbreak at the Armoured Technical Dump within the facility which later spread to where the bombs were stored and triggered the deadly explosions. Within seconds, there was commotion across the city, and as people were running for their lives, there were stampedes which led to several deaths, and by the minute, the death toll began to rise. Thus, across the city, dead bodies littered the streets. Out of panic, people jumped into fire, some ran into moving vehicles and were knocked down while some were burnt to death by the raging fire. While those situations were incredibly unfortunate as can be seen in above picture. Added:
The school buildings, of our Alma Mata: Army Cantonment Senior Secondary Schools and Military Cantonment High School was first tacket (since both were situated in the same cantonment) and were parts of the buildings that were raised and gutted by the sounds and fires of the continuous bomblast. Classrooms and administrative buildings were destroyed. Learning was stopped as there was no classrooms for learning anymore. The students anf teachers of the twin Schools of Army Cantonment Secondary Senior schools & Military Cantonment Secondary School till this day(19+ years) have no classooms anymore, No learning environment anymore. Learning conditions are indeed terrible to say the least. This is why we came up with 'The Incorporated Trustees of Army Cantonment Secondary School 1991' on September, 27th, 2016 to tackle these educational menace affecting these schools due to the bomblast of 27th January, 2002 and the subsequent lack of educational infrastructure in our schools. We look forward to working with all well meaning individuals and corporate bodies to build back our alma mata and create a better learning environment for our leaders of tomorrow. Thanks for passing by. Thank you. Signed. Board.
