No fewer than 50 people lost their lives while scores of others were injured in Gombe central market’s twin blast on Thursday evening.
An eyewitness, Malam Ibrahim Mohammed, an orange seller, told newsmen that the bomb exploded at exactly 5.20 pm, and just a few meters away from the scene, another bomb exploded.
According to him, the number of dead bodies he saw are between 47 to 50 apart from mutilated parts of human bodies.
On his part, a member of the Nigeria Red Cross Society, who pleaded anonymity, said the society counted about 48 dead bodies and the corpses were deposited at the mortuaries of the Specialist Hospital and Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe.
Confirming the incident to newsmen, the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Kudu Nma, said, “there was a bomb blast either on a suicide mission or EIDs were kept somewhere, with the view to causing panic and apprehension to people.”
According to him, the bomb exploded at the central market Sabon Layi, where they sell slippers and clothes.
“People were busy shopping, preparatory to Sallah festival. The casualties are yet to be ascertained. As you can see, people are busy working, trying to save lives. For now, we cannot tell you the number of casualties.”
He said the police had condoned off the place to avoid looting, adding that calm had been restored to the place.
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An explosion has occurred at the Gombe Central market in the heart of the Gombe State capital, a resident of the town, Ibrahim Mohammed, told our correspondent on the telephone.
He said the blast hit the market at about 5.32pm on Thursday.
Mohammed, who said he was not far from the scene of the explosion, told our correspondent that the number of casualties had yet to be known.
“I saw rescue workers and security agents mobilising to evacuate the dead and the injured,” he added.
The market is always busy while activities heightened on Thursday ahead of the Eid-el-Fitr.
Source: Punch and our correspondent