BREAKING : Deadly bomb explosions hit Niger community

A man, Dauda Haruna, has been confirmed dead, and four others, including three siblings, sustained severe injuries following suspected bomb explosions in Bassa community, Shiroro Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State.

The incident occurred on Thursday morning between Bassa and Gwadara communities when the victims were en route to their farm to harvest crops.

Eyewitnesses reported that the first explosion detonated while the three siblings—Mali (20), Nehemiah (14), and Jonah (15)—were traveling on a motorcycle. A second explosion occurred moments later when a motorcycle carrying rescuers hit another explosive device, killing Dauda Haruna, one of the rescuers.

The father of the three injured siblings, Mr. Enoch, recounted the tragedy while struggling to hold back tears at the IBB Specialist Hospital in Minna, where the injured are receiving treatment.

“This is the second time bombs have exploded this month in Bassa,” Enoch said. “We were going to the farm to harvest our crops. I asked my children to go ahead on a motorcycle while my wife and I followed on foot. They were far ahead when we heard a loud sound like gunshots. While discussing whether it might be bandits, someone coming from that direction told us children had stepped on a bomb. I immediately knew they were my children.

“Two people who came from Bassa on a rescue mission stepped on another bomb near the scene where my children were injured. Unfortunately, one of them lost his life,” he added.

Two of Enoch’s children, Nehemiah and Jonah, along with a rescuer, Abdullahi Shuaibu, each lost a leg in the explosions.

An eyewitness, Sa’adu Shuaibu, narrated how the deceased rescuer was delivering bread to nearby villages when he encountered the injured siblings. Unable to assist them alone, he returned to the community for help. Tragically, while returning to the scene with another rescuer, their motorcycle triggered a second explosive device, killing one and severely injuring the other.

Ahmed Almustapha, a local resident, appealed to both the state and federal governments for urgent assistance to address the situation.

When contacted, the Niger State Police Command spokesperson, SP Wasiu Abiodun, said he would investigate the incident but had not provided an update at the time of this report. Efforts to reach the Niger State Commissioner for Homeland Security, Brigadier General Bello Abdullahi Mohammed (Rtd), were unsuccessful as calls and messages went unanswered.

(DAILY TRUST)