Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Scores of worshippers narrowly escaped death over the weekend after a suspected unexploded bomb was discovered within the premises of the United Evangelical Church (UEC), Ehere/Umuola, Ogbor Hill, Aba, Abia State.
Eyewitnesses said the frightening discovery was made while church members were digging around the parsonage to erect a new perimeter fence. During the exercise, they unearthed a large metallic object buried in the ground.
Unaware of its danger, one of the church members reportedly moved the object toward a nearby borehole. Suspicious of the item, the priest in charge promptly raised the alarm and warned everyone to stay away.
The priest was said to have immediately alerted security authorities. Soldiers from a nearby military unit were subsequently mobilised to the scene and successfully evacuated the object.
An eyewitness explained that the incident occurred amid an ongoing road expansion project by the Abia State Government.
“The road separating the church auditorium from the parsonage is being expanded by the state government. As a result, the church decided to pull down its old fence and build a new one to align with the road project. It was during the digging for the new fence that the metal object was discovered. Nobody initially knew it was a bomb until the pastor invited soldiers, who later evacuated it,” the source said.
Sympathisers and residents who thronged the scene expressed gratitude to God, noting that the area is usually bustling with traders and pedestrians. They feared that had the object exploded, it could have claimed many lives and destroyed nearby buildings.
Confirming the incident, the Secretary of the Aba Area Conference of the United Evangelical Church, Rev. Thompson Ikpeoha, said he was yet to receive a detailed briefing from the priest in charge of the Ehere/Umuola church.
Meanwhile, an Army source in Aba disclosed that the Army Headquarters has taken over investigations to determine the origin and nature of the explosive device.
