A boat carrying about 22 passengers on board from Kasabu village in Agwara local government area of Niger to Yauri in Kebbi has capsized. There is no word yet on number of casualties.
Recall that three weeks ago, 30 lives were lost when a boat capsized in Mokwa.
Many of the deaths on water across the country have been attributed to lack of safety precautions by passengers and commercial boat operators, with passengers almost always not wearing safety life jackets.
Alhaji Salihu Garba, the acting Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), disclosed the latest sad development to the News Agency of Nigeria in Minna on Monday.
He said that his agency received a report of the boat mishap that occurred on Monday between 11am and 12 pm.
According to him, a survivor of the mishap said that the boat had about 22 passengers on board.
He said that search and rescue operations was ongoing by the local divers and boat owners under the supervision of the agency’s desk officer in Agwara.
He said no passenger has been recovered yet, adding that the mishap happened on Yauri market day.
Garba added that only after the market would families be able to declare their missing relatives.
He explained that it takes about 24 hours for any drowned person to surface atop water.
He attributed the cause of the incident to water hyacinth coupled with strong waves.
The Mokwa mishap three weeks ago claimed 30 lives, with the loss rising steadily over a 24 hours period.
Garba said then 27 of the dead were women and three male children.
He dispelled rumours that 100 passengers boarded the ill-fated Mokwa boat.
“For now, nobody knows the number of passengers on that boat. Many people entered the boat, so knowing the actual number of passengers on board will be difficult,” he said.
Victims were from Gbajibo, Ekwa and Yankyade communities and were on their way to their farms at the other side of river Niger (old Gbajibo) when the incident occurred.
▪︎ Main report by NAN with additional material by Everyday.ng