Pastor John Kayode of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Otumara, Warri in Delta State has lost his wife and four kids to a
midnight fire which destroyed part of the main church building and property worth millions of naira at Emiko Close, Angle park.
According to reports, the fire victims were ‘burnt beyond recognition’.
A
neighbor, Bright December, who narrated the tragedy to journalists,
said all rescue efforts of those who came early enough were fruitless
because of the iron protectors on their door.
Mrs Margeret Ichibo, a church member, who spoke to journalists said “I left the Church after prayers with her (Kayoda)
on Wednesday. That was in the day. I rushed back few minutes to
1a.m., and fire fighters were just labouring to break in, but it was too late.
“National
Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, personnel tried to evacuate the
bodies, but we advised that police be informed first. By the time police
came, NEMA had switched off their phones. It took the courage of youths
in the neighbourhood and some of the fire service to bring out the
bodies between
5 and 6a.m.
“The bodies have been deposited at the Warri Central Hospital Mortuary.”
Speaking
furt
her, Bright December said all rescue efforts of those who came
early enough were fruitless because of the iron protectors on their
door.
“Last night at about
11pm,
some men were going around, it was like they noticed there was light
problem, they were like trying to trace where the fault could have come
from. On the long run, they came like three times and since they
couldn’t get where the fault was coming from, they left.
At about
12:30am, I heard the woman screaming for help, so we came out.
“When
I got there, I saw the last daughter of the pastor, standing very close
to the louvres, banging on them. There was no way I could help, I saw
one rubber out there with which I started scooping water to put out the
fire. Later on, I saw the woman (pastor’s wife), struggling with the
door, like a middle wooden door, she was shouting for help while she was
trying to open it.
“The three other
children could not be seen struggling at all, it was like they had been
choked with the smoke in the house because where they slept was where we
found them.
“It took like one hour before one man called fire fighters, because it was
midnight
and we were all shouting and trying to see how to rescue them. It took
another one hour before the fire fighters came. By this time, the woman
had died, even the little girl. The little girl was found dead close to
the window because she was just there banging, but there was no way we
could help.
“The windows and the doors were all guarded with
protectors, it was difficult to go through, if not we would have broken
through to rescue them. It took about another fifteen minutes after I
came out and we couldn’t hear their voices again”, December narrated.
