110 Confirmed Dead In Kebbi/Niger Boat Mishap

*Kebbi Boat Accident Devastating, Says PMB

A boat carrying 180 passengers from Loko Mina in Nige State to a
village near Ngaski in Kebbi State, yesterday capsized and claimed
110 of the travellers on board.

It was learnt that the mishap occurred when the boat hit a stem
of a tree under the water a few kilometres from its take-off,
making it to lose control at the upper course of the Niger
River.

An eyewitness said the boat took off from Loko Mina in Niger
State by 7:30 am with 180 passengers who did not wear protective
jackets

Most of the passengers, he said were from Kebbi State and were
heading to a market.

The source said the boat mishap occurred around Ibata village
part of the river near Malale

While confirming the incident the director-general of the Niger
State Emergency Management Agency Alhajii Ahmed Inga said what
worsened the mishap was overloading and the old age of the boat. He
said as at the time of the last report he received, 20 people were
rescued, four corpses recovered, adding that search and rescue
operation was on going by the marine police, National Inland
Waterway Agency (NIWA) and local divers.

Earlier, officials of Kebbi State had said 150 were missing and
22 rescued.

They said the incident occurred in Warrah, headquarters of
Ngaski local government area after take-off from Malale in Borgu
local government area of Niger State.

The chairman of Warrah local government area, Alhaji Abdullahi
Haruna, who confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria
(NAN), said the boat left Niger State with 150 passengers before it
capsized in Warrah.

Haruna said the accident happened yesterday at about 11 am but
the Niger officials said it was 3pm.

The council chief stated that 22 people who wore live jackets
were rescued from the mishap, adding that rescue search was ongoing
for the missing passengers.

The spokesman of the state police command, DSP Nafiu Abubakar,
who also confirmed the disaster, said he will make public their
findings.

Cases of boat mishaps in Niger State have been on the rise in
recent years.

Between 2019 and 2020, at least 50 people lost their lives on
the Malale River following incidents of boat mishaps.

In April 2021, a boat carrying over 70 passengers, mostly
farmers and traders capsized on a river at Zumba in Munya local
government area of the state, leaving scores dead.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has described the news of
the capsizing of the boat in Ngaski local government area of Kebbi
State as devastating and offered his heartfelt condolences to the
families of those affected by this tragedy.

The president in a statement issued by his spokesman, Garba
Shehu, extended his gratitude to those involved in the rescue
efforts and wished the injured from the accident quick
recovery.

*Kebbi Boat Accident Devastating, Says PMB

A boat carrying 180 passengers from Loko Mina in Nige State to a
village near Ngaski in Kebbi State, yesterday capsized and claimed
110 of the travellers on board.

It was learnt that the mishap occurred when the boat hit a stem
of a tree under the water a few kilometres from its take-off,
making it to lose control at the upper course of the Niger
River.

An eyewitness said the boat took off from Loko Mina in Niger
State by 7:30 am with 180 passengers who did not wear protective
jackets

Most of the passengers, he said were from Kebbi State and were
heading to a market.

The source said the boat mishap occurred around Ibata village
part of the river near Malale

While confirming the incident the director-general of the Niger
State Emergency Management Agency Alhajii Ahmed Inga said what
worsened the mishap was overloading and the old age of the boat. He
said as at the time of the last report he received, 20 people were
rescued, four corpses recovered, adding that search and rescue
operation was on going by the marine police, National Inland
Waterway Agency (NIWA) and local divers.

Earlier, officials of Kebbi State had said 150 were missing and
22 rescued.

They said the incident occurred in Warrah, headquarters of
Ngaski local government area after take-off from Malale in Borgu
local government area of Niger State.

The chairman of Warrah local government area, Alhaji Abdullahi
Haruna, who confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria
(NAN), said the boat left Niger State with 150 passengers before it
capsized in Warrah.

Haruna said the accident happened yesterday at about 11 am but
the Niger officials said it was 3pm.

The council chief stated that 22 people who wore live jackets
were rescued from the mishap, adding that rescue search was ongoing
for the missing passengers.

The spokesman of the state police command, DSP Nafiu Abubakar,
who also confirmed the disaster, said he will make public their
findings.

Cases of boat mishaps in Niger State have been on the rise in
recent years.

Between 2019 and 2020, at least 50 people lost their lives on
the Malale River following incidents of boat mishaps.

In April 2021, a boat carrying over 70 passengers, mostly
farmers and traders capsized on a river at Zumba in Munya local
government area of the state, leaving scores dead.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has described the news of
the capsizing of the boat in Ngaski local government area of Kebbi
State as devastating and offered his heartfelt condolences to the
families of those affected by this tragedy.

The president in a statement issued by his spokesman, Garba
Shehu, extended his gratitude to those involved in the rescue
efforts and wished the injured from the accident quick
recovery.