By Egufe Yafugborhi

WARRI—THE lingering territorial dispute between residents of Delta Steel Town Housing Estate of Delta Steel Company, DSC, and host Orhuwhorun in Udu Local Government Area of Delta State, escalated over the weekend with three persons bathed with acid.

The victims, Mr. & Mrs. D. S. Afam, 79 and 68 years, respectively, and an unidentified woman, allegedly suffered the acid bath, while several property were also destroyed in reprisal attack, following a machete attack on an Orhuwhorun native by suspected DSC Township youths.

In the weekend’s reprisal, vehicles, tricycles, motorcycles, power generating sets and residential buildings were damaged.

Relations between township and host Orhuwhorun have been tense since the blocks of flats belonging to DSC Estate were sold to pensioners and workers of the moribund steel company.

Dr. Oputu Sherick, Public Relations Officer, National Task Force, whose official car was destroyed in the mayhem, said trouble started when a DSC Township gang chopped off one arm of an Orhuwhorun youth.

He appealed to Orhuwhorun traditional authorities to amicably resolve the crisis before it got bloodier, arguing that the desire of DSC Township to be autonomous of the control of Orhuwhorun was the root of the dispute.