Monrovia, Feb. 24 -- Doctors at Ganta United Methodist Hospital Monday confirmed the deaths of two young students of the E.J. Zion Nursery, Elementary and Junior High School.

The victims were Enoch Coleman, an 8-year-old boy and Miracle Roberts, a 10-year-old boy, both were in Grade One at the newly established daycare and elementary school owned by local businessman Natt Zourpeawon.

Eyewitnesses reported that the tragedy unfolded during recess on Monday afternoon. The children slipped away from the school campus in the Toweh Yard neighborhood, a densely populated area of Ganta known for its mix of modest homes, small shops and overgrown vegetation bordering nearby swamps.

Covering about a four-minute walk through dusty paths and thick...