Abeokuta — After a religious event in the town, two Lagos State revellers perished while swimming in a river at Itori, Ewekoro Local Government Area of Ogun State.
The two persons identified as Femi Akinola, male, 32 years of Odo Eran Itire in Lagos and Tunde Falade, male, 35 years, of Kola Alagbado, also in Lagos, were swept away on Monday evening by a heavy tidal wave.
The victims, who were members of Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Onikoko via Itori had attended the inauguration of the church in Itori area on Sunday, but in the evening of the following day, they left the church premises for a nearby river to swim and got drowned in the process.
Although, divers moved in to rescue them from the heavy tide and rushed the two to a health centre in Itori, where they were confirmed dead by a medical doctor on duty.
A grieving member of the church, one Adebayo Adeosun, reported the incident to the Police at 18:30p.m., on Monday, that some boys numbering about seven, who came from Lagos on Sunday for his church inauguration were drowned in a river.
The police spokesperson in Ogun State, Omolola Odutola, who confirmed the incident, said that a Divisional Police Officer, Olayemi Jacob, detailed his team to the scene where the remains of the two were evacuated.
Odutola noted that preliminary investigation revealed no mark of violence on them and no foul play suspected, stressing that their remains had been evacuated to Ifo General Hospital, for autopsy reports and later deposited in the same morgue.
Odutola quoted the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Abiodun Alamutu, as extending the Police deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the deceased during this difficult time, assuring that the command remains committed to promoting public safety and preventing such tragedies in the future.
She, however, warned restive youths to steer clear of rivers whose depth or tides they cannot ascertain.