By Ufot Samuel
The rain began like many others during the peak of the rainy season in Calabar. Dark clouds gathered, the skies opened, and residents hurried home, hoping to wait out another downpour. But for the Kingsley Edu family in Ikot Awatim Community, Ikot Ansa, the rain became a nightmare that would change their lives forever.
By the time the storm subsided, four children from one family and a neighbour had lost their lives after a devastating landslide buried their home beneath tonnes of mud and debris.
The tragedy, which occurred after hours of torrential rainfall, has left the community in mourning and renewed urgent calls for government intervention to prevent recurring flood disasters in Cross River State.
The victims, identified as Bright Kingsley Edu (18), Godswill Kingsley Edu (12), Daniel Kingsley Edu (11), and Richard Kingsley Edu (10), had reportedly left a church service before their mother because of the worsening weather.
According to their mother, Mrs. Mercy Kingsley Edu, popularly known as Mama Uwana, the children returned home, changed into dry clothes and lay down to rest, believing they were safe.
Moments later, the saturated hillside behind their house gave way.
The collapsing earth crashed onto the building, burying the children alive before anyone could rescue them.
Also killed was Mr. Udo, a tanker driver who was caught in the disaster.
Throughout the night, neighbours and community youths dug frantically with shovels and bare hands, hoping to find survivors. Instead, they recovered lifeless bodies from the rubble.
For Mrs. Edu, the pain is beyond words.
Standing before what remained of her home, she struggled to understand how a single night could erase almost everything she held dear.
“Why me? Four out of my seven children gone in one day,” she cried as relatives and sympathizers tried to comfort her.
She lamented that everything the family owned was swallowed by the landslide, leaving them homeless and broken.
Her husband, Mr. Kingsley Edu, a Homeland Security personnel who was away on duty when the tragedy occurred, was reportedly too devastated to speak.
The heartbreaking incident has shaken residents of Ikot Awatim, many of whom say they have repeatedly warned about the dangers posed by flooding, erosion and unstable hillsides during heavy rainfall.
Sadly, this is not an isolated tragedy.
Only days earlier, floodwaters reportedly claimed the life of a one-year-old child in another part of Calabar while destroying homes and properties worth millions of naira.
For many residents, these recurring disasters are no longer natural occurrences but warning signs that demand urgent action.
Across Calabar, blocked drainage channels, uncontrolled development on vulnerable slopes and worsening erosion continue to expose thousands of families to danger whenever heavy rains fall.
Environmental experts have repeatedly warned that without improved drainage systems, erosion control projects, proper urban planning and early warning mechanisms, more lives could be lost.
The deaths of the Edu children have once again highlighted the human cost of climate-related disasters and inadequate infrastructure.
Beyond statistics are families whose dreams have been buried beneath floodwaters and collapsing earth.
The cries of grieving parents should serve as a wake-up call to authorities at all levels.
Residents are appealing to the Cross River State Government, led by Governor Bassey Edet Otu, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), humanitarian organisations and public-spirited Nigerians to come to the immediate aid of the bereaved family.
The family urgently needs emergency shelter, financial assistance, psychological support and relief materials after losing both their children and their home.
Community leaders are also calling for comprehensive flood-control measures, improved drainage infrastructure, erosion control projects and the identification of high-risk communities before more lives are lost.
As the rains continue across Cross River State, many fear that unless decisive preventive measures are taken, more families could suffer similar tragedies.
For the Kingsley Edu family, however, no amount of assistance can replace the four young lives lost in a matter of minutes.
Their story is a painful reminder that behind every flood statistic are parents left with empty beds, shattered hopes and memories that the rain can never wash away.
