By Kelvin Ololo
The night began quietly in Ikot Effanga community, Calabar Municipality, Cross River State, with little indication that two people would not live to see the morning.
A man reportedly brought a woman, believed to be his friend, into his apartment on Thursday night to spend the night. By the early hours of Friday, August 28, 2026, the earth gave way.
A landslide from the hilly terrain crashed down on the building, trapping the two occupants beneath the debris and killing them.
The victims, whose identities had yet to be established as of the time of filing this report, were reportedly recovered by youths of the community in the early hours of Friday.
An eyewitness told CrossRiverWatch that the rescuers battled to dig through the earth, but the victims were already dead before they could be brought out.
“They were dug out by youths of the community this morning, and before they could bring them out, both of them had already passed out. Their bodies have been taken to the mortuary,” the eyewitness said.
The tragedy has plunged the usually calm community into mourning, with sympathisers arriving at the scene as residents gathered around the collapsed building.
But beneath the grief lies an older fear. For years, a deep and expanding gully ravine has posed a threat to residents of Ikot Effanga, swallowing portions of land, destroying properties and leaving residents living under the constant fear of disaster.
An elderly resident, who declined to have his name published, said the community had repeatedly appealed to both the Cross River State Government and the Federal Government to intervene before the ravine claims lives.
His question, asked in the aftermath of Friday’s tragedy, captured the frustration of residents who say they have lived with the danger for years.
“I know that now that people have died here, the government may finally come. Must they wait for people to die before they respond?” he asked.
CrossRiverWatch observed that the landslide appeared to have originated from the elevated portion of the area, where residents reportedly dispose of refuse, sending a mass of earth downhill onto the building situated below.
The affected apartment reportedly housed three separate tenants. An elderly woman living in the building narrowly escaped the disaster, while the two deceased occupants were trapped by the earth.
Several other buildings are located beneath and around the hill, with some structures still under construction, raising concerns about the safety of other residents should the erosion continue unchecked.
The incident also comes barely a month after another landslide tragedy in Ikot Awatim community, where four children from the same family reportedly lost their lives after a landslide struck their home.
READ: Deadly Landslide Leaves Family Of Four, One Other Dead In Calabar
The two incidents have renewed concerns over the growing danger posed by erosion and landslides in vulnerable communities across Cross River State.
Friday’s deaths have also raised fresh questions about the response to repeated warnings over the Ikot Effanga ravine.
Before the tragedy, CrossRiverWatch continuously sought to get the Member representing Calabar Municipal in the House of Assembly, Hon. Stanley Nsemo and the Commissioner for Works, Pius Ankpo on record on measures to avert such tragedy but they kept dribbling with postings or not picking calls.
Reports and warnings drawing attention to the worsening condition of the ravine have previously appeared in the media, highlighting the danger posed to residents, houses and properties in the area.
Despite those reports and repeated appeals from affected residents, there has been little visible intervention capable of permanently addressing the threat, according to community members.
READ: Another Landslide Claims One Life Days After Five Died In Calabar
For residents, the latest deaths are therefore not simply an isolated natural disaster but another painful reminder of what they say they have been warning authorities about.
Just behind the relatively calm Ikot Effanga community, close to the Murtala Mohammed Highway, lies a rapidly expanding ravine that residents say has become increasingly aggressive.
As sympathisers gathered at the scene on Friday, the question hanging over the community was no longer whether the ravine was dangerous.
ALSO READ: How Intense Rain And Landslide Rendered Family Homeless In Calabar
The question now is whether authorities will act before another home, another family or another life is swallowed by the expanding ravine.
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