Samuel Oyandongha
5 November 2008
Tradegy struck yesterday at the Etegwe suburb of Yenagoa when a Prophet, his two wives and an unidentified lady were killed after inhaling fumes from a generator.
Residents of the densely populated area who thronged the scene of the incident could not hold back their tears on sighting remains of the deceased persons.
It was gathered that the prophet whose name was given as Adani Okeke and his wives Mary Abinnamu and another whose name was not given had retired to bed in their one room apartment, leaving the generator on.
The generator was still in the room when Vanguard visited the scene of the tragic incident.
According to the first son of the deceased man who simply gave his name as David, two of the three women were his step mothers.
Lamenting the death of his mother (Mary), David said the corpses were discovered early this morning after neighbours raised alarm when they discovered that nobody has come out of the room late into Tuesday morning.
"All the four persons went to sleep last night without any health problem only for people to wake up this morning and found them all dead," he wailed.
Prophet Okeke until his demise Vanguard learnt was the head of the Etegwe Bethel of the Brotherhood of the Cross and Star.
The generator it was further learnt was stationed at the entrance of his one room due to absence of space and also prevent it from being stolen by night marauders.
But little did the prophet know that his action would turn out to be a tragic error of judgment that would cost him not only his life but that of others dear to him.
While the prophet and his wives and their guest were fast asleep, they were allegedly suffocated by carbon monoxide (fumes) from the generator set working overnight to supply electricity to his one room apartment.
The remains of the victims was taken away from the scene of the incident and deposited at the Federal Medical Centre mortuary by a team of policemen from the "B division, Ekeki.
Contacted, Spokesman of the State Police Command, DSP Iniobong Ibokette confirmed the death of the four persons, saying, "They were chocked after inhaling smoke from a generator."
Reacting to the incident, the Civil Liberties Organisation in the state called on the relevant authorities to take urgent step to restore uninterrupted power supply to residents of the state.
Secretary of the CLO, Morris Alagoa, who also visited the scene when the information filtered into town however called on residents and people of the state to stop putting generators in their houses with a view to averting a repeat of such disaster.
"It is pertinent to call on residents to avoid keeping generators on inside their houses, whether during the day or night for their safety. People should learn how to remain afloat while the darkness of the period lasts," he pleaded.
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