Mother, four children die in Rivers inferno

A mother and her four children were burnt to death on Friday morning in a fire outbreak at their residence in the Okochiri community, Okrika Local Government Area of Rivers State.

Although the cause of the inferno could not be immediately established, a source who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the incident occurred when an individual attempted to discharge petrol into a jerrycan, causing the product to ignite.

The source added that the petrol was suspected to be bad fuel.

Confirming the incident in an interview with our correspondent, the Commander of the Civilian Joint Task Force in Okrika LGA, Igwe Godswill, said details of the incident remained sketchy.

Godswill stated that the lifeless bodies of the woman and her four children were found when he and his team arrived at the scene.

He said, “There are no proper details as to what happened. But when we got there, we saw that about four children and their mother, a total of five persons, were burnt and died.

“The police had already arrived and taken proper details of what happened. It is so disheartening that this is happening again in our community.”

Godswill added that local youths had extinguished the fire before his arrival, though the victims were believed to have died before the flames were put out.

• Fire outbreak kills mother, four children in Rivers
• WOW Experience Launches TheNaijaDreams, Inviting Nigerians to Share Their Dreams for Nigeria — and the Part They Will Play
• PTDF inaugurates committee to operationalise Port Harcourt skills centre

He called for an investigation to determine the exact cause of the incident.

Meanwhile, a video of the incident seen by our correspondent showed a woman complaining about the cramped nature of the building, which had its roof and other parts severely damaged.

When contacted, the spokesperson for the Rivers State Police Command, Blessing Agabe, confirmed the incident, saying the mother and three of her children died.

Agabe, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, also disclosed that other occupants of the building sustained injuries, while property worth thousands of naira was destroyed in the inferno.

She added that an investigation had begun to ascertain the immediate and remote causes of the incident.

“Yes, there was a fire incident in which a woman and her three children tragically lost their lives, while others sustained injuries.

“Property estimated at thousands of naira was also destroyed in the inferno. Investigation is ongoing to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the incident and determine the cause of the fire outbreak,” the state police image maker stated.