The death toll from stampedes during two holiday charity events in Nigeria has increased from 13 to 67, police said Sunday. The victims, including at least four children, collapsed during crowd surges as people grew desperate for food items while the country grapples with the worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation.

The dead included 22 people in southeastern Anambra state’s Okija town, where a philanthropist on Saturday organized a food distribution, local police spokesman Tochukwu Ikenga said. Ten others died in the capital, Abuja, during a church-organized similar charity event.

Police said they were investigating the two incidents, only days after another stampede in which 35 children were killed.

Witnesses of the Abuja stampede told The Associated Press there was a crowd surge at one of the church gates, as dozens tried to enter the premises at around 4 a.m., hours before gift items were to be shared.

Some of them, including older people, waited overnight to get food, said Loveth Inyang, who rescued one baby from the crush.

The stampedes prompted growing calls for authorities to enforce safety measures at such events. Nigerian police also mandated that organizers obtain prior permission.

(AP)