A mother and her four children have reportedly died in a fire outbreak at their residence in Okochiri community, Okrika Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The incident occurred on Friday morning, although the exact cause of the fire had yet to be established.
A source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the fire started when an individual allegedly attempted to pour petrol into a jerrycan, causing the product to ignite.
The source also suspected that the petrol may have been contaminated or of poor quality.
Confirming the incident, the Commander of the Civilian Joint Task Force in Okrika LGA, Igwe Godswill, said details surrounding the incident remained unclear.
Godswill said he and his team found the bodies of the woman and four children when they arrived at the scene.
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👉 JOIN WHATSAPP CHANNELHe said the police had also arrived and taken details of the incident, describing the development as devastating for the community.
According to him, local youths had managed to put out the fire before his team arrived, but the victims were believed to have died before the flames were extinguished.
He called for a thorough investigation to establish the exact cause of the fire.
Meanwhile, a video from the scene showed a woman commenting on the cramped nature of the building, whose roof and other sections were severely damaged by the fire.
However, the spokesperson for the Rivers State Police Command, Blessing Agabe, gave a different casualty figure, confirming the death of a woman and three children.
Agabe, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, said other occupants of the building sustained injuries, while property worth thousands of naira was destroyed in the inferno.
She added that police had commenced an investigation to determine the immediate and underlying causes of the fire.
“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,” she said.
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