About 17 persons have died in a stampede during rice distribution in Anambra on Saturday.
An eyewitnesses said the scenes were chaotic and tragic, adding that at least seven of the deceased in the Anambra tragedy were children.
Many others sustained injuries at Okija, Ihiala Local Government Area, following a stampede during the distribution of Christmas rice by officials of Obijackson Foundation.
The foundation distributed such gifts annually for many years and people in the entire Ihiala local government and other neighbouring communities always looked forward to it.
Eyewitnesses said the victims, mostly women and youths, had arrived the facility as early as 5 a.m. on Saturday, awaiting the distribution to begin at dawn.
The crowd became uncontrollable when the distribution began, leading to the stampede.
The dead bodies, and those who sustained injuries, were rushed to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Ihiala.
A viral video shows dead bodies, including pregnant women, littering the vicinity of the hospital’s mortuary.
The video also showed chaotic scenes of people rushing to escape, with some trying to revive those who fell unconscious.
The state police command is yet to issue a statement on the incident, but many relatives of the victims were seen sobbing uncontrollably.
Another stampede in a Catholic Church in Maitama Abuja left 10 worshippers dead while scrambling to receive rice for Christmas.
On Wednesday, a stampede occurred leading to the death of 35 kids who came for a funfair organized by a former wife of Ooni of Ife Princess Naomi in Ibadan.
