- Safiu Kehinde
At least six persons have been confirmed dead with over 19 others rescued in another fatal boat mishap at Faji community in Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto state.
The National Inland Waterways Authority’s (NIWA) Area Manager in Sokoto, Bala Bello, confirmed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Sokoto.
According to Bello, the incident occurred on Friday due to negligence as the canoe was reportedly overloaded, violating the safety rules.
He explained that a team of Inspectors, comprising officials from NIWA, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and Red Cross Society had visited the affected community.
Bello said the team confirmed the casualties’ figures while search and rescue operations were ongoing to locate the three other persons who are still missing.
The Area Manager reiterated that NIWA have been engaging riverine communities on safety measures, guidelines, use of life jackets and other considerations on water usage.
Also confirming the incident, NEMA disclosed that a total of 30 persons were involved in the boat mishap.
The agency however noted that 21 victims have been rescued, including two canoe operators.
Recall that Sokoto State Government confirmed the death of four passengers, 41 survivors and five missing persons in a boat mishap on the 17th of August at Kojiyo village in Goronyo local government area in the state.
The unfortunate incident reportedly occurred along the Sokoto Rima River, when the boat conveying the passengers capsized.