SEVEN officials have been punished for negligence after a stampede Friday left six pupils dead and 26 injured at a primary school in Kunming in the southwestern province of Yunnan.

    A deputy head of the city’s education bureau and a vice chief of Panlong District have been suspended due to “serious dereliction of duty” while another three people, including the head of Mingtong Primary School, have also been suspended, the local government said at a press conference Saturday afternoon.

    Another two people in charge of school safety, including a deputy head of the school, have been removed from their posts, it added.

    The initial investigation showed that the stampede occurred after a nap period, when students were walking downstairs in the dormitory building, said Jiao Lin, head of Panlong District.

    A teacher placed two cotton cushions used for gym class, 200 cm long, 150 cm wide and 30 cm high, against the wall in the corridor of the building. One of the cushions slipped to the ground and blocked the way Friday, tripping some students. Other students following closely behind, but unaware of what had happened, rushed down the narrow staircase, causing a stampede.

    Most of the victims were in grade one and two.

    Each family whose child was killed in the stampede could received at least 800,000 yuan (US$130,400) in compensation, Xinhua said yesterday.

    (SD-Agencies)