A soldier, who sustained injuries from a bomb explosion in Bui, Borno State, has died at the hospital, the Nigerian Army has announced.

Four civilians, including a woman and her child, died instantly while three persons were injured when the a tricycle, popularly called Keke NAPEP, accidentally stepped on the IED planted by roadside along Biu-Damaturu road near a military checkpoint.

The incident happened around 8:00am on Sunday.

“Unfortunately, the IED exploded instantly killing 4 persons comprising of a woman with her baby and 2 other male adults. Three other persons were injured including a soldier and they were immediately evacuated to Biu General Hospital. We regret to state that the injured soldier also died at the hospital.

“The general area has been cordoned off and Explosive Ordinance Device (EOD) team from Forward Operation Base (FOB) in Buratai have been mobilized to carryout further search of the area,” a statement issued by army spokesperson, Sani Usman, said.

The army said that investigation showed that the explosive device was planted a long time ago and had remained undetected.

“This unfortunate development has brought to the fore, the need for more security consciousness and vigilance among all.

“We would like to reiterate that the explosion would not deter us from seeing to the end of Boko Haram terrorists wherever they might be hiding through our ongoing clearance operations,” the army said in the statement.