Residents
of Ekpan and Effurun communities in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State
broke down in tears yesterday when the bodies of two young lovers who drowned
in Ekpan River were recovered.
It
was gathered that divers, who were contracted by the communities’ leadership,
removed the decomposing bodies of the couple, identified simply Kess and
Onoriode, from the river at 1 pm.
They
were buried beside each other at the spot from where they jumped into the
river.
Their
burial rites were preceded by a short traditional service, which excluded women
and girls.
A
youth leader, Pastor Leader Nimogha, said that the deaths were unfortunate.
Nimogha, who is Kess’s uncle, said: “It is very unfortunate that the two
promising lovers ended this way. There is no doubt that the tragedy is as a
result of youthful exuberance.
They chose to express their love in a dangerous
manner because they couldn’t swim.”
A crowd comprising women, youths, friends and families of the
deceased started gathering on the scene of the tragedy as early as 6 am in anticipation
of witnessing the discovery of the bodies.
In line with Urhobo custom, the bodies of drowned persons
would surface about 24 hours after drowning.
“It is a well known fact here that the body of a drowned
person usually resurfaces 24 hours after. So, as the boy and girl sank at 2 pm
yesterday, we expect their bodies to resurface today,” a resident on the scene
told our reporter.
Nearly 1,000 grief-stricken residents converged on the New
(Odogun) Layout and Ogbomwan suburbs in the morning yesterday.
The young lovers met at their romantic rendezvous near the
river on Wednesday.
Kess was said to have entered the river first and persuaded
Onoriode to join him.
But they were said to have suddenly disappeared shortly after
entering the river.
Ekpan River separates the exurb Bendel Estate from New Layout
and Okuisoko areas of Effurun.
It was learnt that the young lovers took a stroll to the
riverside in search of quietude and from the scorching sun.
But there were conflicting accounts of how they drowned.
While a source said Kess was trying to teach his girlfriend
how to swim, another claimed that they died after Onoriode fell into the water
and Kess made a futile attempt to rescue her.
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