Worshipper collapses and dies at Eid prayers in Kano amid fears he was another coronavirus victim

HEALTH officials in Kano State have reported the death of man from the Unguwar Sharada district of the state capital who slumped and died after observing Eid-El-Fitr prayers at the prayer ground on Sunday.

Kano was one of the Nigerian cities to hold huge Eid-El-Fitr prayers in defiance of a national lockdown and calls by health officials for them to be avoided. Governor Abdullahi Ganduje authorised the holding of prayers and subsequently, huge numbers of Muslims turned up to pray at the end of the Ramadan Muslim month.

It is not yet clear if the man died from the Covid-19 virus but at the prayer ground, most of the faithful who turned up ignored all the health guidelines. Very few worshippers wore facemasks and nobody followed the social distancing guidelines compelling them to stay at least two metres apart.

According to reports, the man, who came from an area called Kofar Dan Agundi, slumped shortly after performing the two Rakat Eid prayer in Kano. He has since been buried according to Muslim rites but it is not yet clear if he was tested to see if he was a victim of the dreaded coronavirus.

One local source said:  “We don’t know his name, address and his place of work among other details. What we know is he is from Kofar Dan Agundi but he came to observe the prayer in Sharada.

"He collapsed after the Eid prayer was observed. His relations and Hisbah evacuated his corpse, they took him back to Kofar Dan Agundi where his burial rites were conducted.”