The bridge is said to be the major access road in and out of the community, but it, unfortunately, gets flooded every year during the rainy season.
Residents of Mapa in Dutse Ward, Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja have raised the alarm over the continued loss of lives at a poorly constructed bridge in the area.
SaharaReporters gathered from TrackaNG that the bridge gets flooded when it rains, hence, within the past three years, no fewer than five people have lost their lives at the bridge.
The bridge is said to be the major access road in and out of the community, but it, unfortunately, gets flooded every year during the rainy season.
In September, a woman in her early 20s identified as Queen died while trying to cross the bridge on her way back from work.
SaharaReporters gathered that residents who were also trying to cross the bridge saw as Queen was drowning but could not save her as they were also trying to save themselves from drowning.
Lamenting the ugly situation of the bridge, the youth leader of the community, Yunusa Luka, said residents searched for Queen’s body but could not find it. He said the incident has been reported to the police.
“Up till now, we have not found her corpse. We have been searching nearby streams and river banks but couldn’t find her,” Luka said.
Calling on the government to come to their aid and fix the bridge, Luka said, “We need help from our leaders to come to our aid and save us and save our children from dying while trying to cross the water.”
According to the residents of the community, they have experienced the ugly situation for over 28 years.
They lamented that they are usually handicapped and locked out of other parts of the FCT during the rainy season, adding that the state of the bridge also affects them economically.
They said residents who have businesses outside the community and students in secondary school do not leave the community whenever it rains for fear of losing their lives.