Boko Haram: Heavy Rainfall Aids Trapped Emir Of Gwoza & Others To Safe Haven

According to reports, the heavy rainfall late Monday night, helped hundreds of residents of Gwoza, Borno State including the missing Emir of Gwoza, Muhammed Timta, and a district head in the town, Hakimi Ibrahim who had been trapped on the mountains to escape to a safe haven. Premium Times reports that
residents had been trapped in the mountain for over five days after the Boko Haram insurgents took over the town, killing scores of people and razing down every building including the police station, the local government secretariat, and the emir’s palace. Hundreds of those that escaped managed to climb the rocky mountain that borders Cameroon and Adamawa, with many killed by the insurgents while trying to climb the mountain.

The Boko Haram sect has since taken over Gwoza, and foiled at least two attempts by Nigerian soldiers to retake the town. They also surrounded the foot of the mountain to prevent those trapped from escaping. The trapped residents however took advantage of the heavy rainfall on Monday night, which had made their attackers scamper to covered areas. The residents escaped from the mountains to nearby Madagali Local Government in Adamawa State.

A family member of one of the escapees, Hajia Amina, told reporters that the residents, including the Emir of Gwoza, were as at Tuesday morning being moved to‎ a refugee camp in Uba, a border community between Adamawa and Borno. The immediate past Commissioner for Commerce and Industry in Borno (the state executive council was dissolved last week), Asabe Vilita, also confirmed the escape of some of the trapped Gwoza residents.