BY AGNES NWORIE, ABAKALIKI
A 15-year-old girl (name not given) has been feared dead while two of her siblings reportedly suffered severe burns following a suspected adulterated kerosene explosion at their residence in Ebiaji Noyo community in Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
Moses Oginiyi, father of the victims, said that one of his children poured the suspected adulterated kerosene, bought at the Nwele market, into a lantern. While trying to lit it, the adulterated product exploded leaving one person dead.
According to Oginiyi, the dead girl’s siblings who survived the incident were rushed to a nearby health centre for first aid treatment.
The man appealed to members of the public for financial assistance for the treatment of the victims, saying that they needed to be transferred to a specialist hospital.
During a telephone interview, the Chairman of Ikwo Local Government Area, Elder Steve Orogwu, said that the suspected adulterated kerosene had been mopped up from the market and the incident had been reported to the police.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Loveth Oda, said that though the matter had not been reported to the police as claimed, the Divisional Police Officer at Noyo had moved in to arrest those behind the sale of the adulterated product.
According to her, a sample of the product would be collected for forensic analysis.
The Point correspondent was not allowed by the hospital management to see the victims as of the time of filing this report as it was gathered that the victims were in critical conditions.
