The Ebonyi State Police Command has confirmed that the explosion that claimed the lives of a couple, Mr. and Mrs. George Onuabuchi, in Abakaliki, was caused by a gas cylinder explosion, not an inverter battery as initially speculated.
According to DSP Joshua Ukandu, the command’s spokesman, the tragic incident occurred on August 25. Neighbors alerted authorities after the explosion, and while the couple was rushed to the hospital, both eventually succumbed to their injuries—Mrs. Chioma Onuabuchi died in August, followed by her husband George in September. The couple’s deaths have left the community in shock.
The police investigation revealed that the explosion occurred in the waterworks area of Abakaliki and was due to a gas leak.
Ukandu mentioned that the couple, unfortunately, did not survive to provide more details about the incident, and preliminary findings confirmed that the cause of death was gas-related.
The tragedy is particularly poignant, as Mrs. Chioma Onuabuchi was the younger sister of popular Nigerian Afrobeat singer, Patoranking. This connection has drawn additional attention to the heartbreaking incident.
One of the couple’s relatives, speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), expressed the profound sorrow the family is experiencing, describing the event as a devastating loss.
The couple, who were relatively young, left behind a three-year-old son, further intensifying the sense of tragedy. The relative, visibly distressed, refrained from providing further details, emphasizing the deep pain the family is enduring as they come to terms with the loss.
