A young girl whose name has been given as Fatima has been shot dead at the Fire Festival in Bimbilla, within the Nanumba North Municipality of the Northern Region.
According to a reporter with Beat FM, Mohammed Abdul-Rashid Natogmah, Fatima, a year two student of the Bimbilla Senior High School, was hit by a stray bullet while a procession was moving from the regent’s palace to the Wampu Dam, where the fire was to be thrown.
Mr Natogmah said they were at the palace when they heard someone had been hit by a bullet, adding that they moved to the hospital to confirm the incident.
“I was at the palace when we heard the incident, so we rushed to the hospital, and the dead body was brought to the hospital. I even helped in removing the dead body,” he narrated.
Mr Natogmah said a young lady, assumed to be a friend of Fatima, who was part of the team that accompanied the body to the hospital, said they had sneaked out of the house to the festival because their parents had asked that they should not attend the festival.
“When we asked, the lady told us the girl was from one area called Bayawaya in Bimbilla, and the name is Fatima. She said before they came out, the parents didn’t want them to come out, so they hid and sneaked to the scene,” he said.
Mr Natogmah said the source of the shot remains unknown, and the police have yet to commence investigations into the incident.
The Regent of Bimbilla, Nyelimbolgu Naa Yakubu Andani II, had cautioned against any acts that could mar the beautiful celebration.
He emphasised that the celebration held significant importance for the area and urged the youth to conduct themselves with decorum.
