Several people feared to have been killed in stampede at election campaign rally in Nigeria

Several people were feared to have been killed on Saturday in a stampede at an election campaign rally for Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in the oil city of Port Harcourt.

Thousands of ruling party supporters crowded into a sports stadium to hear Jonathan speak and hundreds more gathered around the gates. There was a stampede after a policeman fired into the air to try to disperse the crush as people left, witnesses said.

Police spokeswoman Rita Inoma-Abbey confirmed that several people had collapsed and been taken to hospital but said she could not immediately confirm whether anyone had died.

The People's Democratic Party (PDP) rally in Port Harcourt comes at the end of a week-long tour by Jonathan of the six main regions in Africa's most populous nation ahead of presidential, parliamentary and state governorship elections in April.