Dozens of people are feared dead after a boat they were traveling in capsized in a river in northern Nigeria’s Kebbi State.
BBC Hausa Service is reporting that the incident took place on Wednesday around 10 a.m., and reports from the area say efforts are still being made to rescue the victims.
The boat was ferrying passengers from Lokon Minna in Niger State to Wara town in Kebbi State carrying more than 160 people including men, women and children.
However, he split into two houses and drowned with all the people in it near the town of Wara. gold mines.
The chairman of Ngaski Local Government Area of ??Kebbi State, Abdullahi Buhari Warah, who visited the scene to monitor the rescue operation, said it was a tragedy.
“In fact we went to the main river in Wara town where there were people crying when they came out of the water. There were more than 160 people on board.
“Someone who came out of the boat said there was no rescue and there were many small children who drowned at sea because there was no one to rescue them.
“Someone from Zamfara State told me that there were eight members of the same family and they were all upset.
He said the number of casualties could not be ascertained so far, “22 people were rescued from various parts of other villages near the river and taken to Wara hospital.
“And only one corpse has been found so far by a girl.
Horn. Abdullahi Buhari added that normally the plane was carrying 65 to 80 people but it was carrying 160 people.
He However said it was not the fault of the Kebbi authorities for overloading the ship and refusing to wear anti-drone uniforms.
“We are currently providing seven boats to the navy and other rescue workers to search for corpses and some survivors.
Some of the passengers were wearing life jackets but had to remove them and give them to others because of the heat.
Accidents like this are not uncommon in this part of Kebbi State and are often attributed to overcrowding and collisions with tree trunks growing in the river.
Last September, a similar accident in Kebbi State killed eight people.
