A major tragedy was averted on Monday following the discovery of an explosive device at a church in Aba, Abia State.

The incident occurred at the United Evangelical Church, Ehere/Umuola, Ogbor Hill, where church members were digging around the parsonage fence in preparation for constructing a new fence. During the excavation, they unearthed a large metal object.

Unaware of its danger, one of the church members reportedly moved the object toward a nearby borehole. However, the priest in charge became suspicious and immediately warned everyone to stay away from it.

The priest promptly reported the situation to a military unit in Aba. Soldiers later arrived at the scene and safely evacuated the object, which was confirmed to be a bomb.

An eyewitness explained that the road separating the church building from the parsonage is currently being expanded by the Abia State Government. As a result, the church had decided to remove its old fence and erect a new one to accommodate the road expansion.

“It was during the digging for the new fence that the object was discovered. Nobody initially knew it was a bomb until the pastor alerted the military,” the eyewitness said.

Passersby and residents who gathered at the scene expressed gratitude that the explosive did not detonate. They noted that the area is usually crowded with traders and pedestrians, adding that no fewer than 100 people, as well as several buildings, could have been affected if the bomb had exploded.

Confirming the incident, the Secretary of the Aba Area Conference of the United Evangelical Church (UEC), Rev. Thompson Ikpeoha, told journalists that he was yet to receive a full briefing from the priest in charge of the church.

Attempts to reach the Army Public Relations Officer of the 14 Brigade, Ohafia, were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report. However, a senior military officer in Aba confirmed the incident and disclosed that the Army Headquarters has taken over the investigation.