A terrible tragedy happened on Tuesday, July 2nd, 2025, in Minna, the capital city of Niger State, after a heavy rainfall caused a major flood in the Tunga community.
Two children — a nine-year-old girl and an unidentified young boy — lost their lives after being swept away by floodwaters. Their bodies were later found in a large drainage tunnel more than five kilometers away from where they were last seen.
🌧️ How It All Happened
According to reports gathered by Gistmilniga, the
Even though the rain stopped briefly while they were leaving the house, the sky still looked like it would rain again. Unfortunately, before they could get back home from the market, heavy rainfall started, and it flooded almost all the streets and drainages in the area.
The roads became filled with water, and cars had to stop moving. People took shelter, waiting for the rain and flood to go down.
😭 The Moment Everything Went Wrong
While returning home, it is believed that the little girl slipped and fell into a flooded drainage. Her brother, shocked and scared, began shouting for help as he saw his sister being carried away by the fast-moving water.
Sadly, no one could help. The floodwaters were too deep and strong. The people nearby watched in fear as the young girl disappeared into the drainage.
The boy quickly ran back home to tell their parents what had happened. The family was heartbroken. Hours later, the girl’s father received a call to come identify her body.
😢 The Shocking Discovery
Her body was found inside a large drainage tunnel on Mandela Street, which is over five kilometers away from where the flood took her. But that’s not all — to the surprise of everyone, another child’s body, a young boy, was also found in the same place. Nobody had known that a second child had drowned in the flood until then.
At first, residents thought it was only the girl who had died. It was when her father arrived at the scene that they discovered there were two victims of the same flood.
👨👩👧 Who Was the Girl?
The girl was the only daughter of her parents. She had two brothers and was described as kind and helpful. Her parents are originally from Edo State but live in Minna.
She was known in the neighborhood as a cheerful child who loved helping out. That day, she was only doing what many children do — helping her mother with house chores.
🗣️ What The Emergency Agency Said
The Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) for comments, the spokesman, Mr. Hussaine Ibrahim, said he had not heard about the disaster but expressed sadness over the incident.
He promised that the agency would visit the family the next day (Wednesday) to learn more and offer any necessary support.
> “The agency is not aware of the disaster, but my people will visit the home of the girl at Tunga tomorrow to meet with the parents,” he said.
🚨 A Call for Caution During the Rainy Season
This painful incident is a strong reminder to all families and children to be very careful during the rainy season, especially when floodwaters are involved. Drainages may look calm on the surface but can become dangerous when filled with fast-moving water.
Parents are also advised to keep children indoors during heavy rains and avoid sending them out, even for small errands, when the weather looks unsafe.
🕯️ May the souls of the two young children rest in peace. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families at this difficult time
