The family of Madam Ekaette Wilson Okpon of Nnung Udo Uweme family in Iboko Offort Village, Uyo, who fell into an open drainage, has appealed to Akwa Ibom State Government to help recover her corpse.
The family also called on the state government to cover up open drainages in the area, including a major canal opened up during the purported search for Madam Okpon’s corpse
Madam Okpon, a petty trader had on Wednesday, March 9, mistakenly stepped into an open gutter during heavy rain by Nkemba junction.
Efforts by onlookers to rescue the drowning woman failed as water waves speedily swept her off.
Reacting to the sad incident, members of her immediate community on Thursday, March 10, blocked the Nkemba area of Abak road and demanded, among other things; an immediate recovery of the corpse and replacement of slabs on the gutters.
To return normalcy to the major street, Ministry of Environment and the Akwa Ibom State Environmental and Waste Management Agency, mobilised for search, with heavy machines and equipment.
Commissioner for Environment, Charles Udoh, who spent the entire day at the scene of the incident, assured that necessary measures were being taken to recover the corpse.
When contacted, Chairman of the agency in charge of waste management, Hon. Prince Ikim, assured that efforts were in place to recover the corpse.
However, with Madam Okpon’s corpse still lurked in the drainage, the family is concerned that the search was not just abandoned after the initial effort, but the gutters were still left open.
Speaking with newsmen, who visited the deceased’s family house in Uyo, yesterday, the Secretary of Nnung Udo Uweme family, Mr Otobong Okpon said the family had expected the state government to promptly cover the drainages to forestall a repeat of such occurrence.
Meanwhile, petty traders by Nwaniba Junction have appealed to the government of Akwa Ibom State to promptly cover up the gutters and the major drain uncovered during the search, maintaining that the shoddy approach to the situation was rather endangering the lives of others within the locality.
Mr. Iniobong Akpan who also spoke on the matter advised the state government to engage a drone if it truly desires to recover the corpse. (The Guardian)
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