Several persons are feared dead in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital following a stampede that greeted a church programme.
The church, Kings Assembly, it was learnt, scheduled to hold the programme at the Polo Club to accomodate the usual large congregation.
A source, who pleaded not to be named, told PUNCH that the crowd tripled possibly because of the church’s offer of free food and other gifts to mark its fourth anniversary.
It was learnt that the small gate leading into the venue was pushed open on Saturday morning to enable them occupy good positions, leading to a stampede.
“As I speak with you, I have counted 21 corpse at the military hospital. I heard some were taken to a different facility,” the source was quoted as saying.
Rivers police spokesperson Grace Iringe-Koko could not give the casualty figure as of press time.
A statement from the police on the incident is expected soon.
