Extreme heat, thirst and overcrowding turned a detention cell in Minna into a desperate struggle for survival, according to survivors who were held there alongside dozens of suspected illegal miners.

Northern Nigeria Hub reported that the survivors spoke to BBC News correspondent Madina Maishanu about their experience in the facility, where they alleged that detainees were denied sufficient water and had little access to fresh air. One survivor said some inmates resorted to drinking urine, while others squeezed sweat from their clothes to quench their thirst.

One of the survivors, Usman Muhammad, recalled how panic spread after a detainee collapsed. He said inmates banged repeatedly on the cell door and pleaded with an NSCDC officer to provide water, but their appeals were allegedly ignored.

“There was one person who started fainting,” Usman said, adding that the situation eventually became so dire that “people started dying, one after another.”

The survivors said more than 50 people were packed into the small room, which had only one window and a single toilet. Maishanu, who inspected the facility, also described the cell as extremely small, with limited ventilation and an intense heat that she could feel during her visit.

The detainees had been arrested during NSCDC operations against suspected illegal mining in Niger State on September 15 and 16. The Corps initially attributed the deaths to a suspected disease outbreak, while the Niger State Government later confirmed that 37 people had died. Authorities have said investigations, including medical and forensic examinations, are being conducted to establish the exact cause of the deaths.

President Bola Tinubu has ordered an independent investigation into the incident, while the Federal Government suspended senior NSCDC personnel in Niger State pending the outcome of the probe. The tragedy has also prompted protests and demands for accountability over the circumstances surrounding the deaths.