Four teenagers have died following an explosion caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Banki, Bama Local Government Area of Borno State.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Nahum Daso, confirmed the incident in a statement on Friday. He said the explosion occurred behind the Banki Motor Park in Wajari Ward.
According to the police, the teenagers were said to have been handling the device—believed to have been picked from the bush—when it went off.
Daso explained that the command received a report from a resident, Babagana Mohammed, at about 1:00 p.m., prompting the Divisional Police Officer in Banki and an Explosive Ordnance Disposal team to immediately cordon off the scene for investigation.
A 12-year-old boy, Mustapha Tijja, survived the blast with injuries and was taken to the FHI 360 NGO clinic in Banki, where he is receiving treatment.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the injured boy and four other children had gone to a makeshift structure behind the motor park, where the device detonated while the victims were reportedly playing with it.
