ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) - A minimum of 13 people, including four children, were eliminated in 2 separate stampedes in Nigeria as large crowds collected to collect food and clothing items dispersed at yearly Christmas occasions, the police said Saturday.

The two mishaps came days after another such stampede in Africa ´ s most populous country, amid a growing trend by local organizations, churches and people to organize charity events ahead of Christmas, as the country deals with the worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation.

Ten individuals were killed in the first stampede in the early hours at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama, an upmarket part of the capital, Abuja, authorities spokesperson Josephine Adeh said in a statement, including that more than 1,000 people have been left from the church.

There was a crowd rise at one of the church gates, as lots tried to get in the properties at around 4 a.m., hours before the gift products were to be shared, witnesses said, explaining that some had been waiting since the previous night.

"The way they were hurrying to get in, some people were falling and some of them were old," Loveth Inyang, a witness. Inyang said he managed to rescue one child as his mother had a hard time in the surge.

Three people passed away in a similar crush later on in the southeastern Anambra state's Okija town at a fundraiser organized by a philanthropist, the state police said.

"The event had actually not even started when the rush began," cops spokesman Tochukwu Ikenga said. There might be more deaths tape-recorded as officers investigate the incident, he stated.

Viral video footage that seemed from the Abuja scene showed lifeless bodies lying on the ground as people shouted for assistance. Some of the injured have actually been treated and discharged while others continue to receive treatment, cops said.

The church canceled the charity drive with bags of rice and clothing products still organized within the facilities.

As the church held a wedding after the crowd was left, the agony and sadness remained palpable even as households and friends gathered for wedding event pictures.

Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu expressed his sympathy with the victims' families and asked states and relevant authorities to enforce rigorous crowd control steps.

The recent stampedes in Nigeria have actually raised concerns about security measures in such events. Several children were eliminated on Wednesday this week when a local structure arranged a well-attended funfair to distribute present items and food to kids in southwestern Oyo state.

After the current disaster, the authorities in Abuja revealed that previous approval should be gotten before such charity events are organized.

The current financial challenge under Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who guaranteed "renewed hope" when he was sworn into office in May 2023, is blamed on rising inflation that is at a 28-year high and the federal government ´ s economic policies that have actually pressed the regional currency to tape low against the dollar.

Frustration over the cost-of-living crisis has actually resulted in mass protests in recent months. In August, a minimum of 20 people were shot dead and hundreds of others were arrested at demonstrations demanding much better opportunities and jobs for youths.