Nigeria Easter Crash Kills 5 Christians; Group Urges Calm
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
GOMBE, NIGERIA (Worthy News) – A branch of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the umbrella group of major denominations, has urged calm after a truck crashed into an Easter procession of pilgrims, killing at least five people and injuring numerous others.
CAN, in Nigeria’s northeastern state of Gombe, said the incident occurred when Christians returned from a mountain they climbed to symbolize a gathering of Jesus Christ as described in the Bible.
The group’s Gombe Chairman, Reverend Joseph Shinga, mourned the deaths but stressed: “I urge for calm; we need the public to be patient as we understand the situation. We can’t be hasty in our conclusion.”
His remarks came amid reports that the fatal accident triggered riots as aggrieved youth in the area reacted violently by burning the truck with the goods it was carrying.
Witnesses also said that protesters attacked the Divisional Police Headquarters in the area and injured several officers on duty by hurling stones and other objects to vent their anger over the incident.
Local authorities confirmed that five persons, including two men and three women, died in the crash involving a truck on the Billiri-Gombe Road in Gombe State.
The victims were reportedly among more than 20 Christians suffering the impact of the crash. Besides those killed, 10 female adults and three male adults sustained fractures and open wounds, officials said. Other reports said 21 people had been injured.
BODIES TRANSPORTED
The bodies of the deceased were taken to the General Hospital in Billiri, while the injured victims were rushed to several hospitals in the area, according to authorities.
Investigators said the truck was transporting grains from Adamawa State to Gombe State when it lost control due to brake failure while approaching a gathering of Christian faithful preparing to celebrate Easter Monday in Billiri town.
The truck driver was detained, police said. There were no reports that terrorism could have been a cause of the crash.
The spokesperson of the Gombe State Police Command, Buhari Abdullahi, said that the crash created tension in Billiri, “but with the quick intervention of security personnel,” the situation was brought “under control.”
“For now, everything is calm, and motorists are plying the route, and there is no cause for panic,” he added.
Monday’s crash wasn’t an isolated incident. Local media recalled that during the last Christmas celebration in Gombe State’s capital, also named Gombe, a passenger bus lost control, hitting Christian youths and injuring some 22 persons.
It comes amid broader tensions in Nigeria, where thousands of Christians are known to have been killed and kidnapped by a variety of mainly Muslim groups in recent years.
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