Children amongst 31 killed at church fair stampede in Nigeria

ABUJA, Nigeria -- A stampede Saturday at a church charity occasion in southern Nigeria left 31 individuals lifeless and seven injured, police instructed The Related Press, a shocking growth at a program that aimed to offer hope to the needy. One witness stated the lifeless included a pregnant girl and lots of youngsters.

The stampede on the event organized by the Kings Assembly 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 occasions are frequent in Nigeria, Africa’s largest financial system, where more than 80 million people live in poverty, in accordance 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 safe their place in line, Iringe-Koko stated. One way or the other the locked gate was damaged open, creating a stampede, she stated.

Godwin Tepikor from Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Company stated first responders had been able to evacuate the our bodies of those trampled to dying and produce them to the morgue. Safety forces cordoned off the area.

Dozens of residents later thronged the scene, mourning the useless and providing any help they could to emergency workers. Docs and emergency workers treated a number of the injured as they lay within the open area. Videos from the scene confirmed the clothes, shoes and other items meant for the beneficiaries.

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

Some church members have been attacked and injured by kin of the victims after the stampede, in line with 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 in the past.

Twenty-four folks died at an overcrowded church gathering within the southeastern state of Anambra in 2013, while at the least 16 individuals have been killed in 2014 when a crowd bought out of control throughout a screening for presidency jobs in the nation's capital, Abuja.

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