A 45-year-old man, Yusuf Usman, has died after entering a well converted into a refuse pit in Kwa Town, Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area of Kano State, in an attempt to retrieve a mobile phone.
According to a statement issued by the spokesperson of the Kano State Fire Service, Saminu Yusif, the sad incident occurred on Wednesday at about 11:13 a.m.
Yusif said the Emergency Response Unit received a distress call from one of its personnel, Kabiru Tata, prompting the immediate deployment of rescue officials from the service headquarters to the scene.
“On arrival, our men found the victim trapped inside a well that had been converted into a waste disposal pit. He had reportedly entered the well to recover a mobile phone that fell inside but was unable to climb out,” the statement said.
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He added that the rescue team succeeded in bringing the victim out of the well unconscious, but he was later confirmed dead, with preliminary findings attributing the cause to oxygen depletion and heat inside the confined space.
The body of the deceased was subsequently handed over to the Ward Head of Kwa Town, Alhaji Muktar, for burial.
Reacting to the development, the Director of the Kano State Fire Service, Alhaji Sani Anas, urged residents to take precautionary measures to prevent similar tragedies.
He appealed to parents and community leaders to ensure that wells are properly covered, while abandoned or unused wells should be filled to avert avoidable loss of lives.
