Residents Take Shelter in Bushes Following Security Warning in Borno

In Lagunasara village, located in the Askira Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, residents have found themselves spending nights in the bush due to a security alert. Soldiers provided the residents with advice to vacate their homes after reports indicated a potential insurgent threat.

Villagers recounted that the instructions followed gunfire heard around 1:10 a.m. on February 10, when unidentified armed individuals traversed their community, resulting in widespread fear among the locals.

According to several residents, women and children were encouraged to seek refuge in the nearby Kidlindila community, while the men remained vigilant in the surrounding forests overnight to guard against potential attacks.

An estimated 500 households have been affected by this precautionary evacuation, leaving numerous families struggling without adequate shelter, food, or essential services during the nights spent outdoors.

Residents expressed distress over limited access to drinking water, medical care, and electricity, raising significant concerns for the well-being of vulnerable groups, including nursing mothers and small children.

The tension in the community escalated late Tuesday night when the sound of gunfire erupted, prompting many villagers to flee for safety into the bush. Although some families were advised to move to Kidlindila, many villagers hesitated, fearing insecurity in that vicinity as well.

As a result, numerous families with women and children chose to remain in small groups in the bushes, maintaining a protective stance against further attacks. However, after soldiers returned to the village on Saturday, they did not reiterate the earlier advice, allowing some families to begin sleeping indoors again, though unease lingers in the community.

Despite resuming some semblance of normalcy, anxiety persists, and there have been reports of fears of attacks in Kidlindila, although these claims could not be corroborated independently.

The conditions faced by many families in the bushes are harsh, with reports of individuals sleeping on the ground with limited food and cold protection. Many villagers stayed outside rather than returning to their homes, and the situation for vulnerable populations remains precarious.

Residents indicated that no humanitarian assistance or intervention from government emergency agencies was forthcoming at the time of reporting, despite the ongoing disruption to their livelihoods. It remains unclear whether any officials from the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) or other relief organizations have visited the area, although there have been no confirmed interventions known.

Attempts were made to obtain comments from the Nigerian Army regarding the situation, but inquiries went unanswered. When reached by phone earlier, the commanding officer of the 115 Task Force Battalion in the area signaled being unable to comment at the moment and requested a call for later clarification, but did not respond further.

Villagers indicated that the evacuation directive on Wednesday was communicated by soldiers, but the military's stance on the situation remains opaque. Lagunasara is described as a rural farming community grappling with years of insecurity connected to insurgent activities, and the lack of access to basic services such as healthcare, clean water, and electricity further exacerbates the vulnerability of residents amid such security threats.