Kids 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 advised The Related Press, a shocking improvement at a program that aimed to supply hope to the needy. One witness said the useless included a pregnant girl and many children.

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

Such occasions are widespread in Nigeria, Africa’s largest financial system, where more than 80 million folks dwell in poverty, in response to government 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 stated. Somehow the locked gate was damaged open, creating a stampede, she said.

Godwin Tepikor from Nigeria’s Nationwide Emergency Management Company mentioned first responders have been in a position to evacuate the bodies of these trampled to demise and convey them to the morgue. Safety forces cordoned off the area.

Dozens of residents later thronged the scene, mourning the lifeless and providing any assistance they may to emergency employees. Docs and emergency workers treated some of the injured as they lay within the open area. Videos from the scene showed the clothing, footwear and other items meant for the beneficiaries.

One witness who only recognized himself as Daniel mentioned "there have been so many kids” among the many useless. Five of the dead kids had been from one mother, he advised the AP, including that a pregnant woman also lost 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 have been “responding to treatment."

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

Nigeria has seen comparable stampedes up to now.

Twenty-four folks died at an overcrowded church gathering within the southeastern state of Anambra in 2013, while not less than 16 people were killed in 2014 when a crowd received out of control throughout a screening for presidency jobs in the nation's capital, Abuja.

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