Success Ezenwafor

Success Ezenwafor was a six year old pupil at Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) Primary School in Awka, the capital of Anambra State, Nigeria. He came from Ekwulobia in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State, and by the time of his death he had already shown a rare presence of mind for a child of his age, an act that would come to define how he was remembered.

On the morning of Tuesday, 22 September 2026, heavy rainfall caused severe flooding in Awka. A school shuttle bus carrying Success and several other pupils, including relatives from his own family, became trapped in rapidly rising floodwaters along the Awka Nibo Nise Enugwu Ukwu Ring Road, also referred to in some reports as the Nibo Isiagu Road, in Awka South Local Government Area. The vehicle was overwhelmed and overturned as the water surged around it.

According to a family member who spoke to the public after the tragedy, Success broke one of the bus windows himself, creating an escape route through which several other children were able to get out of the sinking vehicle. He did not manage to save himself. He was swept away by the floodwaters and went missing, triggering a search and rescue operation involving the Anambra State Police Command, local officials and residents of the area. Nine other occupants of the bus, seven schoolchildren and two adults, were rescued alive and taken to Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital in Amaku, Awka, for treatment. Two of Success's relatives were among those rescued.

His disappearance was closely followed in Anambra State over the following day, with the state police commissioner ordering that the search continue until he was found. His body was recovered on Wednesday, 23 September 2026. The recovery was confirmed publicly by Prince Chinedu Okafor, the chairman of Awka South Local Government Area, who took part in the rescue effort. Because of the practice of same day burial that is common in parts of Igboland, Success was buried later that same Wednesday in his hometown of Ekwulobia.

Success Ezenwafor's death, and the account of his final act helping other children escape the flooded bus, drew widespread sympathy and grief across Nigeria, with tributes shared by local officials, journalists and members of the public. His death also renewed public criticism of poor drainage and road infrastructure around Awka, which residents and commentators said had worsened the impact of the flooding.