Chiemelie Ezeobi
Three days after the duo of Funmi Odusina, and Sola Ogunmefun, both masters students of International Law and Diplomacy, drowned at Elegushi beach, it was gathered that the former died while trying to save the latter.
According to an eyewitness account, the duo lost their lives at a friend’s birthday party that was organised at Elegushi Beach, because their was no life guard or an emergency medical unit.
Although she was fished out after the boisterous waves had swept her away, 24-year-old Odusina was said to have later died on the way to the hospital.
While 27-year-old Ogunmefun was the Personal Assistant to the Ogun State Commissioner of Technology, 24-year-old Odusina was a chartered personnel manager.
Speaking with journalists, Odusina’s aunt, Miss Bukola Odunsi, said: “On that the day my parents and I were at home when we received a phone call from her boss that someone called him from Island General Hospital that Funmi was rushed to the emergency unit of the hospital.
“Immediately my elder sister received the call, she in turn called someone at her hostel at UNILAG. The person later confirmed the incident and that was how we dashed to the hospital only to be told that she had died.
“They deposited her remains at the mortuary but the management of the hospital allowed us to see her remains in the mortuary. Her death is painful.
“Since the incident, our parents have not been stable because the deceased was a brilliant student. She graduated from Covenant University two year ago. We are going to miss her.”
Already, her classmates and the students of the UNILAG Faculty of Law, have been mourning the duo.
Dressed in black clothes, some of their colleagues who spoke on anonymity said their pain was that the duo were supposed to writing their post graduate exam.
One of their friends, Ginika Okolo said: “Some of us have been awake and have cried our lives out. Our tears have turned to anger because their lives were carelessly taken away by Elegushi heavy tide.
“Is there not a rescue team? Don’t people pay to enter the beach? This is so sad but we must bring awareness because their lives are not worthless to carelessly die like this.
“If you went to Covenant University, Bells Secondary School, Home Science Secondary School, University of Lagos and you know their families, loved ones or you have loved ones who have been victims, you need to join these campaign.
“We need wave alarm system, emergency medical unit, patrol unit, good rescue team in all Nigerian beaches.”
Another mutual friend, Ronke Johnson, lamented the lack of life guards at such beaches patronised by tons of people.
She said: “I can’t help but wonder if maybe it would be a different story if we just had lifeguards at locations like these in Nigeria, or even a wave alert system or an emergency medical unit.
“These lives matter. They were young vibrant adults looking to make a change in our country. They had only just finished their masters programme in International Law and Diplomacy.
“This can’t be the norm in our society, every lives matter. All we ask is that government parastatals in charge to look into this. Let our beaches be safe again.”
In another development, the popular Makoko Floating School at the Yaba area of the state, has collapsed after last Tuesday’s heavy rainstorm that lasted for hours.
Although there were no casualties as most of the students has been relocated to another school prior to the rains, THISDAY gathered the structure caved in after being battered by the storm.
The structure, which had for years housed school children in the Makoko area and had survived several rainstorms and the elements, finally collapsed without warning.
