A day after the joyous celebration of a religious festival, an Orthodox Christian church in the small Ethiopian town of Arerti was holding mass funerals for the 36 worshippers killed when scaffolding inside the building collapsed.
Hundreds of mourners walked with coffins draped in colourful cloth into the compound of the Arerti Mariam church while clerics conducted burial rituals.
Among them was 22-year-old Fikre Tilahun, who told the BBC that he had lost his mother in the tragedy. It's difficult to lose your mother, very difficult, he said.
Worshippers had gathered at the church, about 70 km from the capital Addis Ababa, on Wednesday as part of the annual Orthodox Christian celebration of St Mary.
Eyewitness Gebreweld Tesfaye reported that many worshippers had climbed onto makeshift scaffolding to view a newly painted mural on the church ceiling when disaster struck. The staircase was entirely wooden, and there were many people moving upstairs at the time. As the congregants were going, the wooden structure gave way, leading to the collapse, he stated.
As chaos ensued, people scattered in panic or tried to save lives of those trapped beneath the rubble.
Fikre rushed to the church after hearing of the disaster and later found his mother's body at the hospital. The emergency services reported that among the 200 injured, many are in critical condition.
The local archbishop called the incident incredibly tragic and heart-breaking, drawing attention to the pressing need for enforcing safety regulations in construction projects to prevent future disasters.
Fikre indicated that life would never be the same for him and his younger brother without their mother, who had supported them by brewing and selling tella, a locally made alcohol. The government has extended condolences to the families of the victims, emphasizing the necessity of prioritizing safety in all construction projects.
