By Amos Tauna
A 13-year old, Chinedu Ogechukwu ThankGod, has on Monday drowned in a gutter, during a heavy downpour in Sabon Tasha, area of Kaduna, northern Nigeria.
Her whereabouts remain unknown, as search parties are yet to find her, or her remains.
The situation is raising concerns among friends, relatives and neighbours, who have thronged the family residence, which is the location where she was last seen.
People also thronged the spot that caved in before she was swept away; amazed that a gutter can sweep away a teenager.
AFRICA PRIME NEWS visited the area, it was painted with sad and gloomy faces, who expressed worry that over 12 hours after she was swept away by the flood, they still remained clueless on where to find her.
The place where eyewitnesses said they have seen her swept by the raging water became an instant attraction as people wondered how a gutter could sweep away a teenager.
The gutter that swept her was constructed by the Nigeria Railway Corporation, flows from Sabon Tasha from where it connects to Gbagyi Villa before emptying into a River at Karatudu, Romi.
As at the time of the visit, her father was said to be out with one of the search parties and was not available for comments.
Mrs. Ifeoma Eze, mother of the victim was traumatized by the unfortunate incident and could barely utter a word, but after much persuasion from relatives, she painstakingly gave out the age of her daughter and a recent photograph.
“The incident happened at about past 5pm Monday when the rain was falling,” she informed.
Mrs. Eze said Ogechukwu was born on July 17, 2004 and was a JSS 3 student.
The mother of the girl, who is a business woman, appealed for help from all over in ensuring that her daughter was found.
On how the girl fell into the gutter, some neighbours around the vicinity who did not disclose their identities said, Ogechukwu went out to empty refuse into the drainage when the rains were falling, so that they can be washed away.
“She emptied the first one, went back and came back to empty the second one before she was swept into the water. A boy that was around there was said to have attempted to to grab her hand and pull her out but the current of the water was too strong,” a source informed.
When the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Kaduna State, ASP Aliyu was contacted for comments, he directed our correspondent to the DPO Sabon Tasha Division.
