Two young men have reportedly died while manually evacuating sewage from an underground pit at a three-storey building in Aba, Abia State, with some tenants subsequently arrested by the Police.
The incident occurred around midnight on Sunday at No. 10 Powerline, off Omuma Road, Aba.
According to reports, the two victims were contracted by tenants of the building to evacuate the sewage. They reportedly arrived at the premises with a ladder and buckets and began the evacuation process.
Tragedy struck when the ladder they were using allegedly broke into two, causing the men to fall back into the sewage pit, where they died.
Following the incident, officials of the Abia State Environmental Protection Agency (ASEPA) sealed the building to facilitate investigations and ensure compliance with environmental safety regulations.
The Deputy General Manager of ASEPA, Aba Zone, Okezie Ezengwa, who confirmed the incident, expressed sadness over the deaths and blamed the tragedy on unsafe and unapproved methods of sewage evacuation.
Ezengwa said the agency had repeatedly warned residents against manually entering underground sewage and septic tanks, stressing that approved vendors were available to carry out such operations safely.
He questioned why residents would resort to using ladders and buckets to enter underground sewage pits when safer, approved methods were available.
The remains of the deceased were subsequently evacuated and deposited at a mortuary, while the Police commenced investigations into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
ASEPA also urged residents to desist from manually entering sewage or septic tanks, warning that such practices could result in serious injury or death.
