My name is Caroline Ezenwaka, I hail from Oba Uke [on present day Anambra State]. I tell you my son, suddenly it came. Kpim! They said war has started. We were happy that war started, but the war reached us. Bullets were everywhere, killing people. What can we do? We even dug bunkers inside the ground the land where we keep our two children. We dug bunkers in the ground and kept our children there. We covered the bunker with palm fruits leaves. This zinc roof that you see on top ..uh…of our house, we covered it with palm leaves. When it starts, you start hearing bullets and the sound of the plane. They said whenever the plane sees white object, it releases a lot of bullets. On top of the zinc, it keep on firing until the person inside and everything inside the house dies. That’s how we entered the war and the struggle started.

“We were happy that war started, but the war reached us. Bullets were everywhere, killing people. What can we do?”

We entered the war with hunger, running, but we didn’t run that much….. that is running out from our home……. like this plantain, people that have an exposed compound will come to hide under the plantain after they are done eating breakfast. We just stay…someone like me dug bunker. The children will stay in the bunker, we give them food and water inside there. The plane will come and be shooting everywhere, it will pass and return, the bullet doesn’t finish. every night we keep vigilant. Should I talk about how we went to market?

When you take them in, you give them food and water …..you carry your basket and move, We moved in groups, not individual. when we reach we start buying, the place that we would go to the market, you would not see plane, you would not see bullets, You can only hear sounds where they are fighting. You can only hear the sounds of the bullets…. the bullets far away where they are fighting. So when we are done with the market, our basket will be filled. To lift it, an individual can’t left it. They have to be two and you position your head to carry it hmmmmmm we move, there is a place that we will reach we will hear the fighters sound…. did you understand? vvvvvaaa viaaaaah when you hear the sound, you throw your basket because you can’t bring it down gently and lay flat on the ground, crawling with your stomach into the bush that is taking cover, you have to stop where there is a bush. When the jet fighter has passed, we will assemble ourselves again and start helping each other to lift the basket. You will continue hearing the sound of the bullets and the bombs. When we see somewhere that has a little bush, we will gather there.

So when the jets get closer, we will throw away our basket again and take cover and crawl into the bush because there is no house there. So when the fighter passes us, we will regroup again. I’m just saying what I experienced. People that went to Nsugbe and other places very far will tell their own stories.  I don’t know how they went. I know that their own is worse. Let’s keep going.

“So when the jets get closer, we will throw away our basket again and take cover and crawl into the bush…”

Once the fighter bullet hit someone, the person dies instantly. you keep running sometimes you match the corps while running to avoid the bullets that are coming, that is how we escape to come home. it will not prevent you not to go back to market next morining…. What will the children eat?

Every morning we wake up and gather empty basket and go to market. We call it attack market. Do you understand? Attack market. That is what we call it. Would I talk about one or two? I don’t remember anymore. As you looking at me, I don’t remember things.

Should I talk about Feed? Eeeeyyaaaahhh Take is terrable, what you give to children is if you manage to crake some canel you give to them.  The ones breast-feeding, you first chew the palm kernel and then put it in their mouth. Children, they enjoy sucking the breast too. We went to gather palm kernel that we crack for them.

When you enter the bush, you know palm kernel that was eaten by a fowl always break when you crack it. So when we dry it, we make big fire and put the whole palm kernel inside the fire and the fire will dry it. Then we will bring it out, when it is cool we will start cracking it and eating. That is what we feed on. Do you understand.

I don’t know where to start. when you eat this palm kernel and drink water you will not get hungry, you might not see anything to eat again. That is what we feed on.  Luckily, if you see corn, you will be chewing and giving it to the child that is breast feeding. The grown-ups will be crying that it is too strong.

That is how we survive. That is how we feed until God said everything will be alright…..hmmm  We were at the market that we went for when we stopped hearing the sound of gun shot. I can’t remember everything we saw. We were in the market, going back home, thinking that when we get back home, the war must have gotten to our community.  Because it has reached Ogidi and Ogbunike, but we don’t saying it’s coming close…….. under this plantain tree, that is where we hide. People that are grown-up hide there. Once the jet fighter comes around and sees zinc, he will start shooting at it. Anybody that is inside will die. When we came back from the market, there was a lot of planes in the sky. We were surprised.

We started running. We got to Ojoto. A lot of planes are still in the sky. We waited to start hearing the sound of shooting and bombing. We were still coming back. When we got to Uke, Nkwelle Uke. we saw a lot of people outside.

We were surprised that all these people were outside and they were moving around. (We kept on coming back. People started coming up and shouting that the war is over. We carried what we came back with and were dancing and laughing.  They asked us if we didn’t see the planes in the sky. We said that we saw the planes. They said that the planes in the sky were disarming the soldiers. That the war is over. That they have recognized Biafra. That they have recognized Biafra.

People were throwing down our goods.  We were rolling on the ground. We were happy.  This is where I think I will stop.  When I go to the market, I don’t know whether the soldiers comes to the compound. When I come back, I see people that have left.

At one point, there is this woman that is carrying a baby at her back  in the river before you pass.  We were crossing the river. The population was large so we were trying to strengthen ourselves to walk through. The woman barely survived  to cross through the river.  After she crossed, people noticed that the child was dead. She asked for peoples suggestion on what to do. They suffocate the baby. Some were suggesting she goes back with the baby corps. The woman gently loose her wrapper and the baby corps dropped to the ground, the woman match forward leaving the child behind. She picked her basket and head toward market. On our way to the market we often come across dead bodies, after you are done crying you match forward. What can you do? If God helps you to come back safe you thank God, what you bought the family eats. What are you even buying? My son, my mind can’t comprehend.

“They suffocate the baby.”

Are we talking about what we ate? If you manage to see someone that gives you food…… where do you see red oil? Where would you see red oil to eat with? You will be thanking God that they gave you food, you will cook and eat it without oil. No salt. War is evil. I am asking God for us not to see war in our generation again. This thing is happening and I am asking God not to allow us to head to war. Some people said they are preparing for war and I told them please, if there is a way to plead they should because war is not good. God forbid that I see war again.

This interview was conducted in Uke, Anambra State by Chukwuebuka Okoye in August 2025 for Biafran War Memories, a program of ZIKORA Media & Arts African Cultural Heritage Organization.