Residents of Ohufu village, Ogboji community in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State were Saturday, thrown into mourning as eight family members lost their lives in a fire outbreak.
The inferno which occurred at about 3am, razed two thatched houses where the family members were sleeping, New Telegraph reports.
The victims of the disaster include a woman and her seven children.
Her 80-year-old husband, Sylvanus Nefuru and one of the children, Ukamaka Nwefuru were the only members of the family that escaped being burnt to death.
According to Sylvanus, a loud noise woke him from sleep.
Recounting the ordeal, he said, “We lost them, help could not reach us as at when needed. It is really unfortunate. Properties worth millions of naira were destroyed by the inferno,” he added.
Nwefuru, the only surviving child, said her mother rescued her and proceeded to save another member of the family when she was trapped and died in the inferno.
Confirming the incident, the Caretaker Committee Chairman of Ishielu Local Government Area, Henry Eze, lamented the disaster and called on security agents to investigate the matter.
Meanwhile, the cause of the outbreak could not be ascertained as at press time.
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