Youngsters among 31 killed at church fair stampede in Nigeria

ABUJA, Nigeria -- A stampede Saturday at a church charity occasion in southern Nigeria left 31 people dead and 7 injured, police told The Associated Press, a stunning development at a program that aimed to offer hope to the needy. One witness said the useless included a pregnant woman and plenty of youngsters.

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

Such events are common in Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, where greater than 80 million individuals live in poverty, in line with authorities statistics.

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

Godwin Tepikor from Nigeria’s Nationwide Emergency Management Agency stated first responders had been capable of evacuate the our bodies of those trampled to demise and bring them to the morgue. Security forces cordoned off the realm.

Dozens of residents later thronged the scene, mourning the lifeless and providing any help they may to emergency workers. Medical doctors and emergency staff treated a few of the injured as they lay in the open discipline. Movies from the scene confirmed the clothing, shoes and other objects meant for the beneficiaries.

One witness who only identified himself as Daniel said "there have been so many youngsters” among the many lifeless. 5 of the lifeless kids had been from one mother, he advised the AP, adding that a pregnant lady additionally lost her life.

Some church members were attacked and injured by kin of the victims after the stampede, in line with witness Christopher Eze. The church declined to comment on the situation.

The police spokeswoman stated the seven injured had been “responding to treatment."

The “Shop for Free” occasion was suspended while authorities investigated how the stampede occurred.

Nigeria has seen comparable stampedes in the past.

Twenty-four folks died at an overcrowded church gathering within the southeastern state of Anambra in 2013, whereas at the least 16 individuals were killed in 2014 when a crowd obtained out of control during a screening for government jobs in the nation's capital, Abuja.

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