I sprayed Fanta, 10k naira into the river – Survivor recounts his miraculous escape, Jnr Pope’s last moments

• TC Okafor, a daring member of the crew aboard the ill-fated boat that plunged into tragedy and snuffed out the lives of Junior Pope and others, has emerged with a tale of his astonishing escape.
• With bated breath and eyes wide with disbelief, Okafor recounted his spine-chilling brush with death, revealed how, in a stroke of luck, spraying Fanta into the Anam River and showering it with thousands of naira notes seemingly acted as a shield, spared him from.drowning in the Anam River alongside others.

T.C Okafor, one of the survivors of the tragic boat incident that claimed the life of Nollywood actor Pope Obumneme Odonwodo, famously known as Junior Pope, has recounted the moments leading up to the accident.

In the video making the rounds, he revealed that the mishap was due to the lack of expertise of the person steering the boat.

According to him, while they were all on board, only a few were wearing life jackets, while others were not. During the journey, he poured Fanta into the water and tossed naira notes and some crumbs from his snack into the river.

Okafor vividly recollected Junior Pope’s puzzled inquiry regarding his actions, which he elucidated that he was rendering obeisance to the river gods, beseeching for safe passage, hence his unconventional rituals.

Speaking during an Instagram Live session, TC said: “Before I entered the boat, the first thing Junior Pope asked me was ‘What I’m I doing?’ And I said I was observing the water people. I can’t pass without sharing something. I have given them Fanta, so I don’t want anything bad to happen to me. Junior Pope agreed.

“While we were going, the boat guy was wearing an earpiece, and Junior Pope was doing a video, I saw a small canoe with fishermen in front and due to his lack of experience, he drove right into the last point of the canoe and we somersaulted.”

WATCH HIM SPEAK BELOW 

Four actors, including Junior Pope, died when their boat capsized on the Anam River in Anambra State while returning from a movie location.

The President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Emeka Rollas, confirmed Junior Pope’s death on Thursday and stated that three other corpses are yet to be found.