By Derrick Bangura.
Four personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have been lost to a buried landmine in Niger State.
According to a statement released on Monday by the paramilitary agency’s spokesman, Olusola Odumosu, a bomb explosion rocked an operational vehicle of the Niger State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, instantly killing four personnel. The vehicle’s driver sustained very serious injuries during the blast and was rushed to the hospital, where he is currently fighting for his life.
He said the explosion happened in the early hours of Monday morning along Galadiman kogo axis in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State, involving some officers and men of the NSCDC Niger Command attached to Shiroro Hydro Power Station, Shiroro, Niger State on a routine patrol when their patrol vehicle stepped on a buried land mine, which exploded immediately killing all occupants except the driver, who is currently in a critical condition.
Mohammed Ibrahim (Assistant Superintendent of Corps 1), Cheche Ahmed (Assistant Superintendent of Corps 11), Yunusa Mahmam (Inspector of Corps), and Bala Abdullahi (Corps Assistant 1), according to Odumosu, are the dead personnel, while Inspector Bala Adamu, who is currently in critical condition at the hospital, is the driver.
According to Odumosu, the NSCDC’s Commandant General, Dr. Ahmed Audi, PhD, has expressed condolences to the families of the deceased officers and men who paid the ultimate price in service to the nation and reassured residents of Niger of the Corp’s resolve and commitment to the security of Nigerians’ lives and property without fear of retaliation.