A student of the Centre for Distance Learning (CDL) at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, has tragically died by electrocution while retrieving a football in Moro, Osun State.
The incident occurred on Saturday evening at a private hostel located along the Moro/Ife route. According to eyewitness accounts, the student was playing football with friends when the ball accidentally landed in a neighboring compound. In line with an informal rule that the player responsible retrieves the ball, he jumped over the fence to fetch it.
After successfully retrieving the ball and throwing it back to his teammates, the student attempted to climb back over the fence. Tragically, he came into contact with a high-tension wire that had reportedly been brought down by a rainstorm the day before. The contact resulted in immediate electrocution.
Residents near the scene said the student was found motionless by his peers. They used a stick to dislodge him from the wire and rushed him to a private hospital in Ipetumodu, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Confirming the incident, OAU’s Public Relations Officer, Mr. Abiodun Olanrewaju, described the event as "deeply unfortunate" and extended condolences to the student’s family.
“It is very sad that we lost one of our promising CDL students. He had joined a group of boys to play football, and as fate would have it, when he went to retrieve the ball, he accidentally touched a high-tension cable while climbing back over the fence,” Olanrewaju said.
He added that the university’s Director of CDL, Professor Femi Koya, had already contacted the student’s family to convey the news.
The incident has cast a pall of mourning over the university community, as investigations into the circumstances surrounding the fallen wire and safety measures at the hostel compound are expected to follow.
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