The house of a physically challenged man, Mr. Linus Eji at Ododokpa Ndubia Igbeagu in Izzi local government area of Ebonyi State was on Wednesday completely gutted by fire.
Narrating his ordeal to LEADERSHIP, Mr. Eji said that the fire, which he described as mysterious, gutted his house in the early hours of Wednesday, September 11, 2024 when he was sitting outside with his two children, preparing breakfast.
He said his condition and inability prevented him from removing anything from the house, expressing regret that he can no longer feed the family and send the children back to school as new academic session resumes.
Eji who is into shoemaking and repairs said he is depressed by the unfortunate incident and called on the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and other spirited individuals in the country to assist him to feed his children amid this economic hardship.
According to him, some of the items destroyed by the inferno include clothes, bags of newly harvested rice, television set, sewing machine belonging to his wife and his shoe making equipment.
He said, “I was with my two children outside our house around 8am on Wednesday, September 11, 2024, when I noticed that fire has gutted our house and I couldn’t move, or do anything because of my condition.
“Everything in that house was totally burnt down. Not even a pin was removed. I only have this clothing that I am putting on and nothing again.
“Apart from my shoe making and repairs business, I also engage in rice farming. Just recent, I harvested my rice, stored the bags inside the house waiting for it to be milled, only for this unfortunate incident to befall us and burnt all that belongs to me.
“The situation is so devastating and it has brought me back to the scratch. I have to start all again. My children needs to go back to school. We need a roof over our heads, and we still need to feed.”