A heartbreaking tragedy unfolded in Barclay Farm, Margibi County, where a two-year-old girl, Victoria Cooper, lost her life after a section of her family’s crumbling home collapsed on her.
According to residents, the wall, already weakened by continuous rainfall, gave way while the toddler was near the abandoned part of the house. Her mother, Helena Flomo, had stepped out to sell pears to provide for her children. Just a year earlier, Helena lost her husband in a robbery and murder, and now, faced with the loss of her daughter, she cried out in despair: “Why only me, God?”
Community members rushed to the scene, but efforts came too late as the child was pulled lifeless from the rubble. A coroner jury later ruled the collapse accidental, citing the rain-damaged structure as the cause.
The tragedy has sparked sorrow across the community and renewed calls for stronger government action to address unsafe housing conditions in vulnerable areas. Neighbors described Victoria as a bright and joyful child whose life was cut short too soon.
For Helena and the Cooper-Flomo family, the loss adds to an already devastating burden, reflecting the struggles many families endure in impoverished communities across Liberia.
Source: Verity Online
