SaharaReporters can exclusively report that several victims of the explosion were left unattended to, forcing them to seek medical care on their own without any immediate government intervention.
Victims of the Christmas Day explosion in Offa, Offa Local Government Area of Kwara State, were allegedly abandoned to cater for their medical needs, with the Nigerian military and the Kwara State Government nowhere to be found in the aftermath of the incident.
SaharaReporters can exclusively report that several victims of the explosion were left unattended to, forcing them to seek medical care on their own without any immediate government intervention.
Among the casualties were an elderly woman, Mrs. Moromoke Saka, and her 25-year-old son, Quadir Saka, who sustained injuries during the incident.
Both mother and son were reportedly left to treat themselves, despite the severity of their condition.
Speaking with SaharaReporters, Mrs. Saka explained that she was left physically incapacitated and financially helpless in the aftermath of the explosion, adding that the shock from the incident rendered her unable to seek treatment for herself and her son.
A SaharaReporters correspondent accompanied the victims to the hospital and intervened to ensure they received medical attention.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of Offa Local Government Area, Hon. Suleiman Olatunji, was reported to have directed that all victims of the explosion be treated free of charge. However, when SaharaReporters visited the General Hospital in Offa, the doctor on duty at the Accident and Emergency (A&E) Unit, located beside the theatre, said no such directive had been communicated by either the local or state government.
With Mrs. Saka explaining that she could not afford the cost of treatment, the correspondent paid the medical bills for both her and her son.
Receipts of the payments were obtained.
Narrating her ordeal to SaharaReporters on Friday, Mrs. Saka said she was asleep in her room when her son woke her to inform her that he was going out to buy a recharge card for his phone.
“I was sleeping when my son said he wanted to buy a recharge card and went out. Not long after, I heard a very heavy sound. The ceiling fell on me, and the wall facing the passage collapsed,” she said.
“I was shouting, asking what had happened, for God’s sake. My neighbour also said his room was affected. The sound from the incident is still affecting me mentally and physically. It also affected my son; the object hit him on his ear and back.”
She appealed to the Kwara State Government for urgent assistance.
“I am pleading with the Kwara State Government to come to my rescue. The place where I am staying has been destroyed. I have nowhere to sleep now. The government should help me secure a place to stay and also assist my son,” she said.
Quadir Saka, while speaking with SaharaReporters, said the incident occurred shortly after 11 p.m. on Thursday when he went out to buy a recharge card.
“I had gone to buy a recharge card. As I was coming back and entering the house, I heard a heavy sound. Debris hit my head and I fell down,” he said.
“When I fell, my phone also fell into the gutter. I picked it up and then looked up and saw that our house had been destroyed. I started calling my mum. When I heard her voice, I ran into our room, which had been destroyed, carried her and brought her outside.”
He added, “When the object hit me, I was confused and couldn’t even understand what was going on.”
SaharaReporters observed visible injuries on Quadir’s ear and back, where he was reportedly struck by debris from the explosion. He also pleaded with the government to come to his aid.
In a related development, another house located beside Wayfair was also damaged during the incident.
When SaharaReporters visited the location, soldiers were seen positioned around the area, reportedly trying to maintain order and prevent panic.
A resident, Mr. Bisi Makati, whose aged mother was inside the house at the time of the incident, also spoke to SaharaReporters.
“My name is Bisi Makati. I was not around when it happened, but my mother was inside the house,” he said.
“She called me while I was on my way home. When I got here, I saw the extent of the damage. It happened around 10 p.m. There were no casualties in our own case.”
Mr. Makati expressed his personal opinion on the incident, saying, “I think it was a drone strike, I don’t think it was a bomb. To me, it’s not a bomb at all. The Commissioner of Police was just here.”
He added, “There should be proper procurement and procedures for everything. But as for what happened here, I don’t see it as an attack. It’s not an attack at all. It’s just like a mishap.”
As of the time of filing this report, the Kwara State Government had not issued any official statement or provided relief to the affected victims, leaving residents to question the government’s response to the incident.
Meanwhile, the United States and the Nigerian government announced a collaboration to carry out airstrikes against terrorist targets in northwest Nigeria on Thursday, Christmas Day. There was no mention of any operation In Offa, Kwara State.