LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Seven people have been killed and two others injured when a building collapsed in a camp for people displaced by jihadist violence in Borno State.
A classroom sheltering scores of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the garrison town of Monguno caved in around 1930 GMT on Monday following torrential rains the previous day, militia sources told AFP earlier today.
“Seven people were killed in (the) incident and two others were injured and presently in hospital,” anti-jihadist militia leader Musa Kaka said.
Kaka added that the accident happened in a secondary school turned IDP camp where around 5,000 people live in classrooms.
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“The affected classroom had been weakened from a previous fire outbreak and the hours-long downpour on Sunday caused the collapse, said Bello Adamu, another militiaman, who gave the same toll.
The seven fatalities were buried on Tuesday, according to another resident, Ahmad Babangida who attended the ceremony.
“My friend’s son was among the seven dead and his wife is in hospital with a fractured leg,” Babangida said.
Monguno, 135 kms (85 miles) from the regional capital Maiduguri, is home to thousands of IDPs who fled their towns and villages to escape the jihadist insurgency, which has also killed 40,000 people.
The IDPs live in makeshift camps under military and militia protection.