Youngsters amongst 31 killed at church truthful stampede in Nigeria

ABUJA, Nigeria -- A stampede Saturday at a church charity event in southern Nigeria left 31 people lifeless and seven injured, police told The Related Press, a surprising development at a program that aimed to supply hope to the needy. One witness mentioned the dead included a pregnant woman and lots of kids.

The stampede at the event organized by the Kings Assembly Pentecostal church in Rivers state involved people who got here to the church’s annual “Store for Free” charity program, in response to Grace Iringe-Koko, a police spokeswoman.

Such occasions are common in Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, the place greater than 80 million people dwell in poverty, in keeping 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 mentioned. Someway the locked gate was broken open, making a stampede, she said.

Godwin Tepikor from Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Company said first responders had been in a position to evacuate the bodies of those trampled to death and bring them to the morgue. Safety forces cordoned off the realm.

Dozens of residents later thronged the scene, mourning the useless and providing any help they could to emergency workers. Medical doctors and emergency staff handled some of the injured as they lay within the open field. Videos from the scene showed the clothing, footwear and other objects meant for the beneficiaries.

One witness who only identified himself as Daniel stated "there have been so many youngsters” among the many useless. Five of the lifeless youngsters had been from one mom, he informed the AP, including that a pregnant girl also lost her life.

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

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

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

Nigeria has seen comparable stampedes in the past.

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

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