By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
GOMBE, NIGERIA (Worthy News) – A branch of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the umbrella group of major denominations, has urged calm after a truck crashed into an Easter procession of pilgrims, killing at least five people and injuring numerous others.
CAN, in Nigeria’s northeastern state of Gombe, said the incident occurred when Christians returned from a mountain they climbed to symbolize a gathering of Jesus Christ as described in the Bible.
The group’s Gombe Chairman, Reverend Joseph Shinga, mourned the deaths but stressed: “I urge for calm; we need the public to be patient as we understand the situation. We can’t be hasty in our conclusion.”
His remarks came amid reports that the fatal accident triggered riots as aggrieved youth in the area reacted violently by burning the truck with the goods it was carrying.
Witnesses also said that protesters attacked the Divisional Police Headquarters in the area and injured several officers on duty by hurling stones and other objects to vent their anger over the incident.
Local authorities confirmed that five persons, including two men and three women, died in the crash involving a truck on the Billiri-Gombe Road in Gombe State.
The victims were reportedly among more than 20 Christians suffering the impact of the crash. Besides those killed, 10 female adults and three male adults sustained fractures and open wounds, officials said. Other reports said 21 people had been injured.
BODIES TRANSPORTED
The bodies of the deceased were taken to the General Hospital in Billiri, while the injured victims were rushed to several hospitals in the area, according to authorities.
Investigators said the truck was transporting grains from Adamawa State to Gombe State when it lost control due to brake failure while approaching a gathering of Christian faithful preparing to celebrate Easter Monday in Billiri town.
The truck driver was detained, police said. There were no reports that terrorism could have been a cause of the crash.
The spokesperson of the Gombe State Police Command, Buhari Abdullahi, said that the crash created tension in Billiri, “but with the quick intervention of security personnel,” the situation was brought “under control.”
“For now, everything is calm, and motorists are plying the route, and there is no cause for panic,” he added.
Monday’s crash wasn’t an isolated incident. Local media recalled that during the last Christmas celebration in Gombe State’s capital, also named Gombe, a passenger bus lost control, hitting Christian youths and injuring some 22 persons.
It comes amid broader tensions in Nigeria, where thousands of Christians are known to have been killed and kidnapped by a variety of mainly Muslim groups in recent years.
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has taken delivery of the most advanced AN/TPY-2 radar system to date, built by Raytheon and designed specifically to detect and track next-generation missile threats, including hypersonics.
Hungary’s parliament approved legislation Tuesday to withdraw the country from the International Criminal Court (ICC) after Prime Minister Viktor Orbán condemned the institute’s alleged bias toward Israel.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced the official launch of the “Golden Dome,” a next-generation missile defense initiative designed to protect the United States from advanced threats, including hypersonic and space-launched weapons.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday formally adopted a historic Pandemic Agreement aimed at improving global readiness and response to future pandemics, following the devastating COVID-19 outbreak that claimed thousands of lives between 2020 and 2022.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Congress on Tuesday that there is no military solution to the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
A historic water spring that has supplied Damascus for thousands of years is now reduced to a trickle, following the driest winter Syria has seen in decades, raising alarms over worsening water shortages across the capital.
The European Union and Britain have introduced new sanctions against Russia without waiting for the United States to join them, after the U.S. and Russian presidents talks on ending the Russia-Ukraine war were inconclusive.