A 13-year-old girl lost her life in a tragic incident that occurred in Awka, the capital of Anambra State, on Wednesday evening. The girl, who was helping a food vendor along Ziks Avenue, fell into a drainage while trying to save their wheelbarrow from being carried away by flood.
According to a source who witnessed the incident, the girl was with another girl when the heavy rainfall caused a flood that swept their wheelbarrow.
The girl, who was the eldest of the two, tried to retrieve the wheelbarrow but slipped and fell into the drainage. She was immediately carried away by the fast-moving flood.
The source said that people around the area rallied round and rescued the girl in a drainage down the road, but it was too late to save her. She was already dead.
The source said that the woman who owned the food stall was devastated by the incident and cried helplessly under the rain. She said that the girl was not her daughter, but one of the girls who were assisting her in her business.
She said that the woman was wondering how she would explain the tragedy to the parents of the girl, who had entrusted their child to her. She said that it was a horrible sight to behold.
Ziks Avenue, which is located in the heart of Awka metropolis, is known to be prone to flooding after heavy rainfall. The drainage system in the area is inadequate and often gets blocked by refuse and debris. This causes water to overflow and submerge the road and its surroundings.