Four family members have lost their lives while one was hospitalised after they consumed consumed cassava flour, locally called Amala, in Mopa, the headquarters of Mopamuro Local Government Area of Kogi State.

The family of five was said to have eaten the meal and Okra soup which led to the death of the father and three children, while the mother was said to be in a critical condition in an undisclosed hospital.

Speaking to newsmen on Monday, a youth leader in the community, Sunday Simeon, said the family members died between Friday and Sunday.

Simeon said: “The family prepared Amala on Thursday night and they started falling ill after eating the food.

“One of them died on Friday morning and the other members of the family were taken to the hospital after complaining of severe stomach pain.

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“Two of them later died on Saturday while the other person died midnight.”

He added that two of the deceased have been buried while the remaining two are currently in the mortuary.

Also speaking, the chairman of Mopamuro LGA, Moses Sunday David, described the incident as unfortunate, saying: “It is sad that we lost four out of the five members of the family with the mother responding to treatment in the hospital.

“Preliminary investigations suggest that the trouble started after the family’s last meal together. Samples of the remnants of the flour have been taken for laboratory examinations.

“We shall see that the matter is properly investigated by relevant security and health institutions in a way to unravel the probable cause of the unfortunate incident,” David said.

The Star