Buea: 16-year-old girl found dead after falling into gutter

The body of a 16-year-old girl in Buea, whose name MMI is yet to be obtained, was found this morning after she was swept off by runoffs upon falling into a gutter last evening.

Denizens discovered her body at Mile 17, the main entrance into the city, this morning after she fell into a gutter at Molyko yesterday.

Eyewitnesses say immediate attempts to rescue her were futile.

According to reports, the 16-year-old girl was walking by the roadside alongside two relatives at about 6 to 7 pm yesterday, when she slipped into a broken roadside pavement.

“There’s hole there one of those pavement covers were removed and not replaced,” said a resident of Molyko who identified as Queen.

“That’s why she could be carried through the gutters,” added Queen, who witnessed the tragedy.

Many were surprised how a 16-year-old managed to pass through the gutter, given that the roadside gutters in Buea are narrow.

Queen said the runoffs swept the young girl so swiftly that many passersby didn’t notice it. This happened after heavy rainfall in the city that evening.

“I saw it with my own eyes. If I didn’t see it, I wouldn’t have believed it. It was so fast. Before anyone could even understand what happened the rain had taken her away,” Queen added.

All efforts by the population of Molyko to rescue the young girl were futile as she was submerged by the waters, and taken away.

This morning, mud covered her bruised body at Mile 17.

“Look at her knees; she must have struggled to save her life with all the strength she had,” said Shawn, a Buea resident.

“It breaks my heart,” Shawn lamented.

While many find it hard to believe the young girl was carried away by runoff, her family remains heartbroken.

Not The First Case

Runoffs in Buea usually flow in very high currents due to the city’s sloppy terrain.

At least five people have died in Buea this year due to runoffs and flash floods that usually follow heavy rains.

Flash floods hit the city on Saturday, March 18, killing two people and destroying dozens of homes.

Among those who died were a 10-year-old girl by the name of Irene and a 27-year-old man from Bova village.

A few weeks later, runoffs again swept off Nathaniel Eyone, a Form One student at Baptist High School, Buea.

He was found dead several kilometres away several hours later.

This also resulted from torrential rains that caused a mini-flood in Buea on the afternoon of Sunday, April 16.

The young boy was said to be playing at the back of their dormitory with some friends when he slipped into the gutter.

Mimi Mefo Info