Rivers State Police Command said a total of 31 persons have died during a stampede at the venue of an outreach programme organised by a church in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital on Saturday morning.
Gatekeepers News reports that the affected area church, known as Kings Assembly, was said to have invited members of the public to partake in the event where gift items and food were promised to be shared to the congregation.
Although the church is located in the GRA area of Port Harcourt, the event was held at the Port Harcourt Polo Club, a bigger facility to accommodate the anticipated crowd.
The acting spokesperson for the state Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, while confirming the numbers of deaths, said the church had organised the outreach to give out palliatives to the underprivileged in society before the unexpected occurred.
“It is 31 persons that died. It was a stampede because a church was trying to give out palliatives.
“They were about to start the event by 9 am or so. But some persons went there and broke into the place and went inside.
“So people started rushing in and there was a stampede.
“From the information we have, the church was trying to gift items and food to assist the underprivileged.
“Meanwhile, investigation has commenced to ascertain the remote and immediate causes of the incident,” Iringe-Koko said.
