Matthew Onocheta and Morakinyo Akinosun
Several people have been killed and others injured following a stampede in Nigeria’s southeastern state of Anambra, in a third incident in one week.
The Anambra incident happened at the gate of the Obijackson Centre, in Okija, in the Ihiala Local Government Area of the state on Saturday during the sharing of palliatives including rice, vegetable oil and money.
It was gathered that victims were mostly women and children who were gathered at the gate, struggling to gain entrance amid a very large and uncontrollable crowd.
The palliatives were donated by a member of the community, Chief Ernest Obiejesi (Obijackson).
According to witnesses at the venue, many people collapsed, with several bodies and injured persons taken to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Ihiala.
In a viral video seen by KOIKI Media, several bodies, mostly women including an apparently pregnant woman – littered the vicinity of the hospital’s mortuary.
Police in the state could not be reached for comments. Many relatives of the victims were seen sobbing uncontrollably, with a voice narrating the incident in the video.
Earlier on Saturday, in the country’s capital Abuja, at least 10 people were reported dead, with many more injured in a stampede when residents scrambled to receive palliatives distributed by the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama, Abuja.
According to eyewitnesses, the incident occurred between 7 am and 8 am when the crowd surged forward to receive the palliatives.
The event, organised to provide relief to struggling residents, reportedly drew residents mostly from Mpape, Gishiri Village, and other nearby settlements.
Police and emergency service could not be reached for comments.
On Wednesday, 18 December 2024, a stampede at a school funfair in the southwestern Nigerian city of Ibadan killed 35 children and seriously injured six others, according to authorities.
The injured children were taken to various hospitals for medical attention following the incident, which took place in Nigeria’s third-largest city, Oyo State Police Command said.
“Eight persons have since been arrested for their various involvements”, police spokesperson Adewale Osifeso said in a statement on Thursday.
Nigeria has seen several deadly stampedes in recent months.
In March, two students died and 23 were hurt after being crushed as thousands gathered for free bags of rice handed out by local authorities at Nasarawa State University, in central Nigeria.
Later that month, another stampede killed four women who had been waiting outside the office of a wealthy businessman in the northern city of Bauchi to collect 5,000 naira ($3.40) cash gifts to help pay for food during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Witnesses said members of the crowd pushed to get hold of the money, causing a stampede, as Nigeria grappled with its worst economic crisis in a generation.
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