Kaiyuan [China]: As many as 51 children and three teachers were injured on Monday after a man scaled the wall of a kindergarten in southwestern China and sprayed caustic soda on them.
Nearly 40 minutes after the attack in Kaiyuan, Yunnan province, the police detained a 23-year-old man. The police said they believed he was acting alone, reported South China Morning Post.
The Kaiyuan municipal government, in a statement, said: “A man, surnamed Kong, cut wires and climbed over a wall into Dongcheng Kindergarten on Monday afternoon and sprayed sodium hydroxide on children and staff.”
“As many as 51 children and three teachers were sent to Kaiyuan People’s Hospital and PLA 926 Hospital for treatment. There were no life-threatening injuries, but two victims suffered serious burns, four had less serious burns and 48 sustained minor injuries,” it added.
government statement further said that the initial inquiries indicated that the man was acting out of “revenge at society”, however, the investigation is underway.
Monday’s incident is not the first school attack to take place in China. In Septemeber, a 40-year-old man was detained after eight children were killed and two more were wounded in a knife attack at Chaoyangpo Primary School in Enshi, central Hubei province.