Tragedy struck in Bazabe village, Albasu Local Government Area of Kano State, as two men died on Saturday while trying to retrieve a mobile phone from a pit latrine.
The victims, Usman Muhammed and Ibrahim Inuwa, both 40 years old, reportedly suffocated to death in the process.
Spokesperson for the Kano State Fire Service, Alhaji Saminu Abdullahi, confirmed the incident in a statement on Sunday.
He said the agency received a distress call around 11:16 a.m. from a police inspector, Auwalu, reporting that two men had become trapped in a pit latrine.
According to Abdullahi, Muhammed was the first to enter the pit after his phone fell in.
When he became trapped, Inuwa tied a rope around himself and descended in an attempt to rescue him, but he also became trapped.
Rescue teams recovered both men unconscious and rushed them to the hospital, where they were pronounced dead by medical personnel.
The matter has been reported to the Divisional Police Office in Albasu for further investigation.