Youngsters among 31 killed at church honest stampede in Nigeria

ABUJA, Nigeria -- A stampede Saturday at a church charity occasion in southern Nigeria left 31 people lifeless and seven injured, police informed The Related Press, a surprising growth at a program that aimed to offer hope to the needy. One witness stated the dead included a pregnant lady and plenty of children.

The stampede at the event organized by the Kings Meeting Pentecostal church in Rivers state concerned individuals who came to the church’s annual “Shop for Free” charity program, in accordance with Grace Iringe-Koko, a police spokeswoman.

Such occasions are common in Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, the place more than 80 million individuals stay in poverty, in line with authorities statistics.

Saturday’s charity program was supposed to begin at 9 a.m. but dozens arrived as early as 5 a.m. to secure their place in line, Iringe-Koko stated. Someway the locked gate was broken open, making a stampede, she said.

Godwin Tepikor from Nigeria’s Nationwide Emergency Management Company mentioned first responders had been capable of evacuate the bodies of these trampled to death and convey them to the morgue. Safety forces cordoned off the realm.

Dozens of residents later thronged the scene, mourning the dead and offering any help they may to emergency employees. Doctors and emergency employees treated some of the injured as they lay within the open field. Movies from the scene confirmed the clothes, sneakers and other items meant for the beneficiaries.

One witness who only recognized himself as Daniel said "there were so many kids” among the dead. Five of the useless children have been from one mother, he advised the AP, including that a pregnant woman also misplaced her life.

Some church members were attacked and injured by family members of the victims after the stampede, based on witness Christopher Eze. The church declined to touch upon the state of affairs.

The police spokeswoman mentioned the seven injured were “responding to therapy."

The “Store for Free” event was suspended whereas authorities investigated how the stampede occurred.

Nigeria has seen similar stampedes prior to now.

Twenty-four people died at an overcrowded church gathering in the southeastern state of Anambra in 2013, while not less than 16 individuals were killed in 2014 when a crowd got uncontrolled during a screening for presidency jobs in the nation's capital, Abuja.

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Related Press journalist Hilary Uguru in Warri, Nigeria, contributed.