Steph Deschamps / May 29, 2022
At least 31 people were killed Saturday in a stampede in southern Nigeria during a church food distribution, police said.
The disaster occurred in the town of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, said Grace Iringe-Koko, a local police spokeswoman, reporting 31 deaths.
Local Nigerian media reported that the event was organized by King's Assembly Church to provide food and various supplies to the needy at a polo field in the oil city.
In recent years, Nigeria has experienced several tragedies during food distribution stampedes, including in 2021 during a food distribution program organized by a humanitarian agency in the northern state of Borno, where seven women died after being trampled by the crowd.