The fire was said to have started from one of the rooms of a makeshift building where a mother had locked her four children and gone out to buy some items for cooking.

Eyewitnesses said of the four children, two were already asleep while their elder siblings were still awake when the fire started at about 10 pm.

Although the cause of the fire could not be immediately ascertained, an eyewitness said social media reports that the inferno occurred inside the Captain Elechi Amadi Polytechnic, Rumuola, were untrue, saying it actually happened behind the school.

He said the makeshift structures which were completely razed, housed many rooms with over 27 families living there, even as he expressed sadness that they had been rendered homeless.

He stated, “It is a makeshift building behind the school. It is a gory site. I’m standing beside two children who have lost their lives in this fire. Their bodies have been covered,”

Another eyewitness, simply identified as Meg, said, “The fire started from the woman who lost her two children. She was cooking at about 10 pm yesterday (Sunday). The stove she was using to cook was on. She then locked the door to go and buy some ingredients.

“When she came back the fire had engulfed the buildings. The two children who were awake tried to save their younger siblings but later ran out because of the heat from the fire. So that was how the two younger children were burnt to death.”

He further said the elder children were banging the door of their room, shouting for help from neighbours without response, before they found a way of escape, while their younger siblings, aged six and eight years respectively, were burnt beyond recognition.

Reports say that over 27 families have been rendered homeless as they could not salvage their properties before firefighters arrived.

It was further gathered that some neighbours and passers-by who saw thick black smoke billowing into the atmosphere later put a call across to the fire service.

Upon arrival, though late, the firefighters succeeded in putting out the fire and preventing it from spreading.

When contacted, the spokesperson of the State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed the fire outbreak and the death of the children.

Iringe-Koko, a Superintendent of Police, stated, “From the situation report I received, the children were aged nine and five years.

“We (police) have started an investigation to ascertain the cause of the fire. The woman (mother) has been invited for questioning as part of our investigation.”