Succour For Female Student Who Jumps Off Fourth-floor To Escape Roasting In Hostel Inferno
LAGOS FEBRUARY 9TH (NEWSRANGERS)-There was a fire on the fourth floor, and she jumped from the balcony, sustaining severe injuries on the concrete below.
That is the fate of Miss Chidubem Nwankwo, a student of Abia State College of Health Sciences and Management Technology (ASCOHSMAT) Aba, Abia State.
Miss Nwankwo, who hails from Okigwe in Imo State, has been lying in her hospital bed since the incident.
It was gathered that the fire started at about 6.00pm on December 16, 2017. Occupants of her flat, and others ran in different directions as a huge smoke enveloped the apartment. The facility is an off-campus female hostel of ASCOHSMAT.
The smoke was said to have come from a burning cable at the entrance of the apartment.
in panic, Miss Nwankwo climbed the balusters in the balcony of her apartment and was hanging on a rail preparatory to jumping down when neighbours and passersby shouted that she should not jump as they were making every effort to put off the fire.
A resident of the area told our reporter that at about 6.15pm when they heard shouts of help from the students’ hostel, they rushed to the scene to see the back flat of the fourth floor on fire.
The man who spoke anonymously said, “As we tried to put out the fire and rescue the students who were trapped inside, we noticed that one of them had already made an attempt to jump down and we pleaded with her not to make that dangerous move as we are doing everything possible to put out the fire and rescue them.”
However, before the fire could be put out, the girl, in her early 20s, had jumped down, landing on the concrete floor.
Miss Nwankwo sustained multiple injuries in both legs and was rushed to a private hospital located in the area.
Miss Nwankwo, while narrating how she jumped from the fourth floor, said that the smoke from the fire that started from the entrance to the apartment was so choking that it was difficult for them to breathe.
She said as the fire was advancing and there appeared not to be any help, she decided to jump down to save her life.
The girl said when help came and people were shouting at her not to jump, she was already in a fix as her hands which had hung on the concrete slab were becaming weak and could no more carry her. She fell off, she said.
Nwankwo said she was responding to treatment, adding that she might have a surgical operation on her right leg for multiple fractures.
Efforts to reach officials of ASCOHSMAT on the issue were not fruitful, but a staff of the institution, who craved for anonymity because he was not allowed to speak to the press on the matter, admitted that some of their students live in the off campus hostel, though he denied knowledge of the incident.
Investigations revealed that earlier in the year, there was another fire incident at the hostel which was caused by a cooking gas, but it was promptly put out by neighbours before it could cause any harm.
A House of Representatives member representing Aba North and South Federal Constituency, Ossy Prestige has visited Miss Nwankwo, promising to pay her medical bill.
The medical director of the hospital Dr. Akunne-Wariso described Miss Nwankwo’s survival as divine, saying she was responding to treatment and recuperating faster than was thought.
Prestige encouraged Dr. Akunne-Wariso and his team not to relent in the effort to get Miss Nwankwo was back on her feet as soon as possible to enable her return to her normal life and continue her education.
Prestige also promised to give every necessary financial support in order to make sure that Miss Nwankwo gets all required medical attention.
He also interacted with other patients and encouraged them to hang on and look up to God as their source of healing. The lawmaker equally offered financial assistance to them.
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Posted by News Rangers
on Feb 9 2018. Filed under National, State.
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