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5 killed after church collapses in Nigeria

Xinhua, April 13, 2015 Adjust font size:

At least five people were killed after a church building collapsed on Saturday in Oduma town of southeast Nigeria's Enugu State, local resident and police said on Sunday.

A building of St. Anthony Catholic Church Cathedral collapsed Saturday night following a downpour, Isaac Mba, an eyewitness told Xinhua.

The worshipers were in a prayer meeting when the incident occurred, he added.

Ebere Amarizu, the state police spokesperson, said the cause of the incidence was not yet known.

"Yes, I can confirm to you that five persons died following the collapse of St. Anthony Catholic Church at about 8 p.m, but we are yet to know the cause," he told reporters.

"It is not yet clear as to what brought about the collapse of the building, but we have commenced full investigations into the incidence," Amarizu said.

Building collapses are not unusual in Nigeria, which normally resulted in deaths and injuries. On Sept. 12, 2014, a multi-storey guesthouse that belongs to the Synagogue Church of All Nations in Lagos, Nigeria's economic hub, collapsed and killed 116 people. Endi