Kids among 31 killed at church honest stampede in Nigeria

ABUJA, Nigeria -- A stampede Saturday at a church charity event in southern Nigeria left 31 folks dead and 7 injured, police instructed The Associated Press, a stunning development at a program that aimed to supply hope to the needy. One witness said the useless included a pregnant lady and lots of youngsters.

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

Such occasions are common in Nigeria, Africa’s largest financial system, where more than 80 million folks dwell in poverty, in keeping with government 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, making a stampede, she mentioned.

Godwin Tepikor from Nigeria’s Nationwide Emergency Administration Agency said first responders have been in a position to evacuate the our bodies of those trampled to loss of life and produce them to the morgue. Security forces cordoned off the realm.

Dozens of residents later thronged the scene, mourning the useless and offering any help they could to emergency workers. Docs and emergency staff handled a number of the injured as they lay within the open area. Movies from the scene confirmed the clothes, sneakers and other gadgets meant for the beneficiaries.

One witness who solely identified himself as Daniel said "there were so many youngsters” among the many useless. 5 of the lifeless kids were from one mom, he told the AP, including that a pregnant lady additionally misplaced her life.

Some church members had been attacked and injured by family members of the victims after the stampede, in keeping with witness Christopher Eze. The church declined to comment on the scenario.

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

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

Nigeria has seen similar stampedes previously.

Twenty-four folks died at an overcrowded church gathering in the southeastern state of Anambra in 2013, while at least 16 people have been killed in 2014 when a crowd received 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.