*Says surviving mom yet to be told her 3 kids died in the collapse
*State govt. donates N500, 000, orders full investigation
*Building of 2bedroom flat for family by Council Boss on going
Sunday Okerekes elder brother has narrated how shocking it was for him to dig through the storm debris in search of survivors after the collapse of his younger brothers building.
In an interaction with The Voice, on Thursday Nov. 7, Okerekes elder brother narrated that his younger brother, Sunday whose three children were killed in the building collapse, is member of Akaeze community vigilante and had gone to his duty post the night of the incident.
He said that on that faithful day, there were strong winds and that while it was still raining, the four children and their mother had their dinner and went to bed: But at about 9:45pm while was yet to sleep, my people came and called me that Sundays house has collapsed and Sunday had gone for his vigilante work.
I quickly rushed out, and everywhere looked different. I didnt know where to start; I just looked for where to put my legs and began to dig through the debris of the storm. I was shocked when I saw the corpses of my nieces covered by debris and dust, I was hoping to get a survivor but that hope was dashed. I dragged out the corpse of the first person, God! It was terrible. I looked further and saw the lifeless body of another, I just removed the debris and dust and carried her out, and I later saw the corpse of the third person.
I didnt know that their mother and one other child managed to come out alive, it was my wife that told me to stop searching that they have seen the survivors and they were rushed to the hospital.
As Im speaking with you now, their mother doesnt know that three of her children are dead, they are still in the hospital receiving treatment and three of her children have already been buried he narrated.
While the deceased father, a commercial motorcyclist who spoke to The Voice described the situation as disheartening, stating that losing his children has been the greatest shock of his life.
Sunday said he doesnt know how to break the news to his wife, while thanking God that his wife and one child were spared in the disaster.
However, the state government has commiserated with the deceased family.
Secretary to Ebonyi State Government, Dr Kenneth Ugbala, visited the bereaved family in company of the commissioner for Information, and state Orientation, Barrister Uchenna Orji, who is also from the local government area as well as other exco members.
On getting to the incident scene, the government officials were shown the graves of the three siblings and the on going building project at the same spot where the building collapsed.
Dr Ugbala who felt pity at the site of the incident pleaded with God to comfort the family and never to allow such tragedy to be recorded in the state again.
He ordered for immediate investigation to ascertain the root cause of the collapse, while he handed over an envelop containing N500, 000 to the family, promising them that Gov. Umahi will do more when he comes back from his oversea trip, as he will personal like to pay condolence visit to the bereaved family.
He also commended the Ivo local government chairman for running to the aide of the family as soon as the incident happened, likewise the Coordinator of Akaeze Development Centre.
Indeed, it was surprising as the exco members got to the incident scene to discover that the local government council boss, Hon. Ogbonnaya Ude was already building two bedrooms flat for the family.
Ude said that the woman would need a place to enter when she comes back from the hospital to mourn her children and that since the council couldnt save the lives of the kids that it can at least provide a place where she can stay with the surviving child and her husband.
He expressed his sadness over the ugly incident, while thanking God that there were survivors.
The family was so happy to have received such kind gestures from the state government and the local government chairman.
The Voice reportedly gathered that the three siblings were been killed at the weekend in Akaeze, Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, following the collapse of a building in the area.
The building as gathered had a thatched roof and had been in a very bad shape but the deceased father, Sunday Okereke, was adamant about it even when his wife, Elizabeth, raised concerns over it.
The family had gone to bed on Friday night hoping to wake up the following day hale and hearty but reverse was the case, as their only shelter collapsed and killed three members of the family, sparing the lives of their mother and one other child.
The names of the deceased were Mmesoma, 11 years old, Onyinyechi, 8 years, and John, 3years.
But the family could not afford the fund to make alternative arrangements for relocation as a result of hardship, according to a source.
The corpses were removed from the building by neighbors and have been buried while their mother and her only surviving son were still receiving treatment in an undisclosed hospital as at the time of filing this report.
When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Loveth Odah, said the incident was yet to be reported to her office, assuring that as soon as she gets the report she will make the necessary details available to the press.
Stating; I called the DPO of Akaeze Development Centre and he said he will text me the details but he has not, I am still waiting for his text”.
Meanwhile, the Coordinator of Akaeze Development Centre, Onyebuchi Ogbadu confirmed the incident.
He said; When I received the information, I rushed to the place and saw that three kids died instantly while the surviving mother and one of the children were rushed to the hospital. It was very critical. The incident happened on Friday night.
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