One dead, three injured as 30-year-old building collapses in Lafia

By Edwin Phillip, Lafia

LAFIA — Tragedy struck the Tudun Amba area of Lafia, Nasarawa State, after a 30-year-old mud house collapsed on a family of six, killing a four-year-old girl and injuring three others.

The incident occurred at about 2am on Thursday, shortly after rainfall.

An eyewitness, Kefas Abu Danjuma, who is the deceased girl’s uncle, said the two-room building housed six people from two families.

According to him, one room was occupied by his uncle and his three children, while the other housed his brother, his wife and their two children.

He said his uncle and his children sustained injuries that were not severe, while his brother’s four-year-old daughter died in the collapse.

He added that the family’s two-year-old daughter was also critically injured and had been referred from the Federal University Teaching Hospital, Lafia, to the University of Jos Teaching Hospital (JUTH) for further treatment.

“The building had six people. The first room was occupied by my uncle and his three children, while the second was occupied by my brother, his wife and two children.

“My uncle and his children sustained injuries, but they are not that severe. My brother lost his four-year-old daughter, while his two-year-old daughter is battling for her life,” he said.

The deceased child has since been buried, while the other victims remained at the emergency unit of the hospital in Lafia as of the time of filing this report.

Danjuma attributed the collapse to the devastating effects of flooding that had affected the area for about 12 years, alleging that there had been no government intervention to address the problem.

“We have been suffering from this for about 12 years now. Nobody has come to check how the street is doing. We need the help of government. Without government, we cannot do anything in this situation, especially for those in the hospital and with the building also. It is painful for us as a family, and we leave everything to God,” he said.

Also speaking, the youth chairman of Tudun Amba community, Jonathan Ovye Kuje, said residents received a distress call following the collapse.

Kuje described the incident as shocking, particularly the death of the child, and prayed for the survival of the two-year-old girl who was referred to JUTH.

He warned that similar incidents could occur in the community if urgent measures were not taken to address gully erosion and the deteriorating condition of roads.

“People living within the street cannot even have access to their homes because the road is caving in. People are unable to use their motorcycles to get to their houses, and most buildings are being eaten up by erosion. That is one of the factors that contributed to the collapse of this building,” he said.

He appealed to the government to intervene by constructing proper drainage channels to control the flow of water and prevent further damage to homes and infrastructure.

Efforts to speak with the relevant authorities were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.

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