A mother in the Ikot Anwatim community of Calabar, Cross River State, is mourning the loss of four of her seven children after days of relentless rainfall caused a house on a nearby hillside to give way, crushing her family’s home below.
Mrs Mercy Edu told reporter that the tragedy struck around 8:30pm, after her children had returned home from school to change out of wet clothes. Five of them were inside when the neighbouring hillside house collapsed onto their home, sending mud and water pouring in. Four children, aged between 6 and 18 died on the spot. Only one, a daughter, survived and was rescued by neighbours before being taken for treatment.
Edu described her children as bright students with promising futures, one of whom had recently finished secondary school and hoped to study nursing. She said the disaster was purely a consequence of the extreme rainfall softening the hillside, not any structural fault in her home.
Cross River State Governor, Bassey Otu, visited the family and the state government later provided ₦2 million in support. Edu says no financial support can replace her children, and is appealing for housing assistance, health support, and help rebuilding her livelihood along with a call for government action to address the risks posed by unstable hillsides in her community.
