Tragedy in Calabar as nursing student swept away by flood found dead after 5 days

Tragedy struck in Calabar, Cross River State, as the lifeless body of 23-year-old Elizabeth Awhobiwom Ukah, a student of the Federal Nursing Science College, was recovered from a drainage ditch five days after she was swept away by floodwaters on Good Friday.

Elizabeth was returning home from the Mass of the Cross service at Holy Family Catholic Church, Big-Qua Town, when heavy rainfall triggered a flash flood in the area, close to Eastern Secondary School and Marian Market. Eyewitnesses said she was caught in the raging waters and dragged away by the current.

Her body was discovered on Tuesday, bringing a painful end to a days-long search by family and community members. It has since been deposited in an undisclosed mortuary.

The deceased hailed from the Ohong community in Obudu Local Government Area, in the northern part of Cross River State.