How over 70 fans watching Liverpool vs Chelsea match escaped death during explosion in Kaduna beer parlour

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Over 70 football fans who were watching the finals of Carabao Cup between Liverpool and Chelsea were said to have escaped death when an explosion rocked a beer parlour in Kabala West, a suburb of Kaduna metropolis on Sunday evening.

Speaking with newsmen, the proprietor of the beer parlour, Mr Larry Nuhu, explained that “What happened yesterday (Sunday evening) at 9.30 or thereabouts was that one of my staff rushed to call me and told me that one man came with a bag and suddenly dropped the bag in the beer parlour and left.

“It was a black bag and it was opened and I peeped inside and I saw cables there, negative and positive. Thank God I have knowledge of science. So I noticed that it must be something dangerous, though positive and negative were not connected.

“Another thought came into me to move the object away from where customers were staying because it might be timed to cause serious damage.

“But I decided to move it away so that the damage could be minimal if it is timed. I took the risk and threw the bag far from the scene. So, this morning I called the JTF who in turn invited the police.

“The bomb experts came and identified it, it was a bomb. They combed the area and told me it was now safe. The commissioner of police later came and gave me the advice to beef up local security in the area. He also advised that we should not allow anybody with a bag to enter the place.

“I can estimate that over 70 to 80 people were watching the football match. This is because people were already leaving because the match had come to an end. So some people had earlier left the place.”

Earlier, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mohammed Jalige, confirmed that there was an explosion suspected to be an Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) which occurred on Sunday night at Kabala West of Kaduna South local government area.

“The explosion is suspected to be IED, there is no casualty recorded in the incident. There was nobody in the building when it exploded. It happened Sunday night around 21:45pm.

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“The anti-bomb squad has been deployed to the scene to analyse the particles we got from the place,’’ he said.

Meanwhile, the State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, on Monday evening paid an assessment visit to the scene of the incident.

Aruwan who arrived the scene in the company of the Garrison Commander advised the owner of the beer parlour to scale up personal security in the area just as he said the state government would continue to beef up security in the State.

According to a statement by Aruwan, the Kaduna State Government advised citizens across the 23 local government areas of the state to be vigilant against explosive devices planted by terrorists in public places.

The statement noted, “the Kaduna State Government wishes to issue a crucial advisory to citizens across the state, for heightened alertness to the threat of explosive devices planted in public places by terrorists.

“This follows sustained assessments by security agencies, and the possibility of terrorists looking to harm citizens, by discreetly placing explosives in public facilities such as schools, hospitals, hotels, bars, entertainment centres, restaurants, parks, major roads and places of worship.

“Security agencies are working to ensure that no harm or destruction comes to residents and facilities.

“Citizens are however urged to be alive to this threat, and to remain watchful for suspicious persons loitering, or packages seemingly abandoned in strategic places.

“Increased general awareness is strongly advised, and frequent thorough checks of premises are recommended.

“Any suspicious person or object observed must be immediately reported to the nearest security formation. The Security Operations Room may also be contacted, on the lines 09034000060 and 08170189999.

“Quarry operators are also advised to enhance security on their sites and to ensure that explosive materials are not readily accessible to be carted away for criminal purposes. Sites will be inspected for compliance.

“Close monitoring of the situation by security agencies will continue.”

Muhammad Sabiu