At least 13 people have been confirmed dead and 26 others rescued alive in the tragic boat mishap that occurred on Saturday in the Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State.
The Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), which made this known on Sunday, also said that many other passengers were still missing as search and rescue efforts continue.
The incident occurred around 11:45 a.m. on Saturday in Kwata village, Shiroro Local Government Area of the state, when a boat carrying traders and goods capsized en route to Zumba for the weekly market day.
Confirming the development to journalists in Minna, the state capital, on Sunday, the Director-General of NSEMA, Alhaji Abdullahi Baba Arah, stated that recovery operations were ongoing.
“So far, we have been able to recover 13 corpses while search for other passengers is still on,” Arah said, according to VANGUARD.
Earlier reports indicated that the boat was overloaded with both traders and goods, a recurring issue on market days in the area.
Local divers and volunteers have since joined emergency workers in frantic efforts to locate more victims, dead or alive.
According to the agency, a few passengers, including the boat operator, were rescued shortly after the accident.
Arah said one of the survivors was taken to the General Hospital in Kuta, where he was treated and discharged.
While the exact cause of the accident has yet to be officially established, NSEMA and locals suspect overloading and neglect of safety procedures as likely factors, problems that have plagued water transport in the region for years.
“We are yet to determine the remote cause of the mishap but we will get the details later. Search for other corpses is still ongoing as villagers in the area are helping out in this regard,” Arah said.
NSEMA revealed that 39 passengers were on the boat, out of which 26 persons were rescued, with 13 deaths confirmed, comprising eight women, three men, and two children.
Despite repeated distributions of life jackets to water transport operators by the state government, the National Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (N-HYPPADEC), and the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), enforcement of their use remains lax.
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