Four students die after Nsukka party, university declares mourning
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Punch
The University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in Enugu State, confirmed the deaths of four students after an off-campus party and declared three days of mourning, with six injured students hospitalised. The victims reportedly consumed alcohol and drugs during a celebration among classmates, according to Vice-Chancellor Simon Ortuanya, cited by Punch.
Six other students who attended the gathering were receiving treatment at different hospitals after four of their classmates died, Professor Simon Ortuanya, vice-chancellor of the University of Nigeria in Nsukka, Enugu State, said on Thursday, cited by Punch. Ten students from different departments had attended the party organised to celebrate a friend’s completion of final-year examinations.
The four students who died reportedly consumed substances suspected to be alcohol and drugs. The University of Nigeria announced the suspension of all social and university activities for three days and said it was working with security services to determine the exact cause of the deaths, according to Simon Ortuanya. The university also reiterated its ban on student-organised graduation celebrations.
The university’s Pharmaceutical Association of Nigerian Students had previously denied that all the victims were pharmacy students. Its president, Onah Olisaemeka, said he had seen the bodies of two men and two women deposited at Faith Foundation Hospital, according to Punch.
