"I Lost Four Brilliant Children in One Night" – Cross River Mother Recounts Landslide Tragedy

A grieving mother in Cross River State, Mrs. Mercy Edu, has shared the heartbreaking story of how she lost four of her children in a single night after a landslide caused by days of heavy rainfall destroyed their family home in Ikot Anwatim community, Calabar Municipality. 

Mrs. Edu, a foodstuff trader and mother of seven, said the tragedy happened after several days of continuous rainfall in Calabar.

According to her, she was still at her shop on the night of the incident while some of her children had already returned home. Two others later left the shop to change their wet clothes after coming back from school, bringing the total number of children inside the house to five. 

She explained that moments later, residents heard a loud noise as a house located uphill collapsed under the pressure of the rain and slid downhill. The building crashed directly onto their family house, sending mud, rocks and floodwater into the home.

The disaster claimed the lives of four of her children instantly, while only one child was rescued alive by neighbours who rushed to the scene. 

Mrs. Edu described the incident as the most painful experience of her life, saying she watched everything she treasured disappear within minutes.

She recalled that the children had simply gone home to rest after school, never imagining that the heavy rainfall would trigger a deadly landslide.

The incident, which happened earlier this month, threw the entire Ikot Anwatim community into mourning as residents joined emergency responders in searching through the rubble. Reports confirmed that the landslide killed four siblings from the same family and another victim after days of torrential rainfall in Calabar.

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