Fear has gripped the people of Abor community in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State following the mysterious deaths of four family members in the community.
It was reported that Peter Okolongwu, his wife, Petronilla, their nephew and niece, who were living with them, all died days apart in a strange and mysterious way in January 19, 2023.
The situation forced community members to embark on a search to unravel the mysterious deaths without success.
The deceased who have been slated for burial on Friday, April 14, were said to have died following minor complaints of blurred eyesight.
Peter, whose wife was said to have taken to the hospital, died just two hours after getting to the hospital, The Nation learnt.
It was further gathered that while Peter died a day after he was hit by a strange illness at the hospital on January 18, 2023, his wife died a day after from similar circumstances at a different hospital, followed by their niece and nephew.
Jolted by the development, the community endorsed autopsies for Peter, Petronilla and Favour, while they buried Boy and reported the matter to the police.
President General of the community, Ozo Bonaventure, told reporters that the matter has also been escalated to the Ministry of Health and the State ‘s Disease Control Agency.
He said,
“The entire community was devastated by this tragedy. One thing that was clear to all is that the deaths were strange, as they weren’t sick, but died hours apart.
“To ascertain the root cause of these mysterious deaths and prevent future occurrence, the matter was reported to the police by some family members and a coroner inquest ordered. Some government health authorities were also alerted.
“Officials at the state’s Disease Control Agency came to the community and asked questions; the police also obtained their information. Later the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) officials came from Abuja to the community and took samples from everyone that had connection with the deceased. They thought it could be an epidemic.
“It is more than two months. As I speak to you, none of these efforts have yielded anything. We have not been able to unravel the course of the mysterious deaths.
“The Disease Control office, Abuja informed us that it was not an epidemic.”
“The autopsies, we paid for at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Enugu, in the last two months have not produced any results. The hospitals where they died could not give a medical report about the cause of their deaths. We are worried and still seeking answers and solutions.
“I am a Christian, but as I speak to you, some traditional members of the community have gone to make inquiries and came back without answers. We are praying to God to help us because we have not seen this kind of a thing before.
“We are still shocked by the development. When the incident occured in January this year, most members of the community abandoned their homes in fear that it was an epidemic. They returned following assurances from the NCDC officials that it was not an epidemic.”