Nigeria: Death toll in church stampede rises to 24

The death toll as a result of a stampede an overcrowded church gathering in eastern Nigeria is now 24, according to information provided by the Red Cross.

Nineteen women were amongst the dead at the Holy Ghost Catholic Church in Uke, Anambra state on Saturday, where around 100,000 worshippers had gathered for All Souls Day, Red Cross spokesman Peter Kachi said by telephone.

Authorities did not know what caused the stampede which happened as followers celebrated an overnight vigil to mark All Saints’ Day. The event had been attended hours earlier by the Anambra state governor, Peter Obi. He later returned to the scene and visited the injured in hospital, promising to set up an inquiry to establish the cause of the accident.

Religious services gathering several hundred thousand people are common in Nigeria, a country of around 170 million split roughly evenly between Christians and Muslims.

Source: Agencies