Trapped students screamed for help under the rubble as desperate parents searched for their children after the Saint Academy school in the Jos North district of Plateau State collapsed on classrooms, according to an AFP correspondent at the scene.
Rescue workers tried to reach the victims with heavy machinery, and images from the scene showed crowds gathering around a caved-in concrete building and heaps of debris.
"As of 6:00 pm, 154 people have been rescued from the debris. Sadly, 22 individuals have been confirmed deceased. Injured students and staff are receiving medical treatment at various hospitals across Jos," Musa Ashoms said on Friday evening.
Earlier, AFP saw 16 bodies in two hospital morgues in Jos. All were wearing school uniforms.
With his mother at his hospital bedside, injured pupil Wulliya Ibrahim, 15, told AFP: "I entered the class not more than five minutes, when I heard a sound, and the next thing is, I found myself here."
"We are many in the class; we are writing our exams," he said.
Earlier, the National Emergency Management Agency said the two-story building housing Saint Academy collapsed, killing "several students."
Chika Obioha, a resident at the scene, told AFP that he saw at least eight bodies at the site and that dozens more had been injured.
"Everyone is helping out to see if we can rescue more people," he said.
AFP's correspondent said he saw 11 bodies in the morgue at the Bingham University Teaching Hospital and that five dead were taken into the mortuary at the Our Lady of Apostles Hospital in Jos.
It was not immediately clear what caused the collapse, but residents said it came after three days of heavy rains.
"Devastated by the tragic loss of young lives at Saint Academy," UNICEF Nigeria representative Cristian Munduate wrote on X. "Children, full of dreams, were writing exams when the school building collapsed. Deepest condolences to the families affected."
In 2021, at least 45 people were killed when a high-rise building under construction collapsed in the upscale Ikoyi district in Nigeria's economic capital, Lagos.
Ten people were killed when a three-story building collapsed in the Ebute-Metta area of Lagos the year after.
Since 2005, at least 152 buildings have collapsed in Lagos, according to a South African university researcher investigating construction disasters.
Bad workmanship, low-grade materials, and corruption to bypass official oversight are often blamed.