Harmattan: Two friends suffocate from charcoal smoke as weather gets excruciating cold in Jos

Two friends, Saminu Idris and Idris Dahiru, both 25, of Gangare community of Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State on Saturday morning, lost their lives to smokes from a locally made charcoal room warmer.

The incident occurred around 12:30 am after the deceased had burnt charcoal while preparing to sleep to warm their sleeping room due to the low temperature that the state is experiencing since Friday.

They were believed to have inhaled toxic smoke from the burning charcoal and suffocated in the room.

Idris Aliyu Adam, father to one of the deceased (Saminu Idris) who confirmed the incident on Sunday at his residence said his family has received the story with shock.

“What happened was the will of God. We love them but there is nothing we could do. That is their destiny.” said Mr Aliyu Adam.

Adam, however called on residents in the state to desist from burning charcoal in their sleeping room to avoid cold, saying there are charcoal that may be toxic in nature which people might not know.

The elder brother to the deceased, Labiru Idris, in whose house the tragedy occurred, told newsmen that when the duo came back home around 11 pm, they knocked at his door to demand a little charcoal to set up the warmer.

“They came back Friday night at about 11:pm, it was too cold and my brother knocked at my door. My wife opened and he collected Kasco in which they lit up the charcoal to warm the room as they went to sleep,” he said.

According to him, when he woke up the following morning he smelt some odour oozing out from around the compound.

“I looked at our kitchen thinking that my wife had ploughed something because electricity was restored, I discovered that the odour was not from there. I slid the window open and smoke came out. I called my brother’s name twice and he did not answer, neither did his friend. I then called my neighbour with whom we forced the door of the room open, but could not enter due to the intensity of the smoke. Later, when we gained access to the room, we found them dead. My thinking or assumption is that somehow, they got suffocated by the charcoal and probably one of them had attempted opening the door, but on the process pushed the warmer, which lit a fire in the room,” Mr Idris said.

Bello Lukman Unity Fm 93.3 Jos wrote:

“Despite the intense cold in Jos city, let’s still be cautious: Saminu and Idris are intimate friends, they live in Gangare area of Jos North. They are both 25 years old.
On Friday, 3rd January, as a result of the excruciating cold in Jos , they took a charcoal ladened fire into their room not knowing the smoke from charcoal could be poisonous. They were both found dead in the room yesterday morning. May God Almighty forgive their sins and may we never experience such. Ameen/ Amen.

”

Meanwhile, the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), had on Friday stated that the temperature in Jos had decreased to 6.9 degree Celsius making the city the coldest in the country.