At least 27 people were killed and several more missing when a Nigerian river ferry capsized on Friday, officials told AFP, the latest mass drowning on the country’s busy waterways.
The disaster occurred near Dambo in Kogi state in Niger at the point where West Africa’s most powerful river can widen by more than 600 meters (yards).
“It’s not clear how many people were on board, people don’t usually keep records of passengers,” said Sandra Moses of the state emergency management agency. “The search and rescue of survivors and possible bodies is still ongoing.”
Musa said 27 bodies had been recovered. Kogi State Red Cross spokesman Abubakar Abullahi said more than 50 people were reportedly on board the boat.
Villagers and volunteers downstream of the accident site have been urged to remain on the lookout for bodies.
“It’s not clear what caused the accident,” Moses said. “This could have been caused by turbulence or by hitting an obstruction in the boat. Boat operators do not usually have life jackets, so none of the bodies recovered had life jackets.
“The age of the boat may have played a role in this. Typically a boat’s lifespan is between five and ten years, but you see boats that are 20 years old. We’ll have a better idea of the situation tomorrow.”
The office of Kogi State Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo issued a statement condoling the casualties and urging private boat operators and local authorities to ensure safety improvements.
“Particularly concerned was that most of the victims were women, small traders and artisans who are engaged in legitimate business activities to earn livelihood and contribute to the state economy,” Ododo said.
Friday’s tragedy was the latest in a series of boat accidents on this stretch of the Niger that flows from the northeastern border to central Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea.
Last month, about 100 people were feared dead after a boat carrying 300 passengers, many of them women and children, capsized in a river for a Muslim festival in Niger state.
In September, an overloaded boat sank while carrying more than 50 farmers across the Gummi River in Zamfara state. More than 40 people are believed to have died.
In June 2023, more than 100 people died when a river boat carrying about 250 passengers capsized in the north-central state of Kwara, one of the country’s deadliest waterway accidents in years.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
