A well-known Benue activist and humanitarian, Ukan Kurugh, has urged the Benue State Government to immediately impose a state of emergency due to the increase in snake bite incidents in rural areas.
Kurugh clarified that the need arose from the growing number of snake attack-related deaths, especially in isolated locations with little access to medical care.
He made the appeal in response to the untimely death of 14-year-old Chagu Terhemen, who was living with his family at the Agagbe IDP camp in the Gwer West Local Government Area.
According to reports, since the year began, there have been numerous instances of snake bites in the Agagbe camp and a number of other rural communities in the state.
In an alarming post on his verified social media account, Kurugh lamented the victims’ incapacity to pay for care and cautioned that things were getting worse every day.
Kurugh wrote: “Benue State has seen an alarming and intolerable increase in the number of snake bite-related fatalities.
Every week, lives are lost that could have been prevented with timely and reasonably priced access to antivenom.
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