Panic as explosion rocks Catholic cathedral in Umuahia
The capital city of Abia state, Umuahia was thrown into state of panic as an explosion went off at the headquarters of the Catholic Archdiocese of Umuahia, popularly called Mater Dei Catholic Cathedral, late Tuesday afternoon.
It was gathered that the explosion was not a terrorist attack, but was caused by an abandoned fuel tank that was buried underground in the church premises and forgotten.
The gardener is said to have unintentionally triggered the explosion when he set fire to a pile of trash he gathered on the spot where the tank was buried. The blast destroyed the roofs of some buildings around the cathedral.
The state Commissioner of Police, Chris Ezike, confirmed the incident and disclosed that no life was lost in the explosion.
“A cleaner in the church, after sweeping the compound, set fire to the waste and the fire spread to a disused underground fuel tank, which exploded, bringing down part of a nearby fence and shattering a vehicle parked in the next compound,” he revealed.
He also indicated that there were officials handling the matter to ascertain the level of damage and ensure that the explosion is under control.
“As I speak to you, the Explosive Ordinance Department and the Bomb Disposal Unit of the command have been moved to the place to ascertain that there is nothing much more than the facts that we know now,” CP Ezike said.
The explosion was attributed to negligence and the police said that more investigation will be done to gather more information on the effects of the incident.
