A total number of 42 persons have died while 150 were rescued alive from the boat mishap that occurred in the Mokwa Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State.
This is according to an update from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) on Friday night.
Following the information received from the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) on the unfortunate incident, NEMA Minna operations office SAR Team with key stakeholders including NSEMA and the Federal Fire Service visited the scene for an on the spot assessment.
“About 300 passengers were onboard the boat from Gbajibo community in Mokwa LGA of Niger State to Gbajibo community in Kaiama LGA of Kwara State,” NEMA wrote in a post it shared on its official X account.
“The passengers were returning from Maulud celebration when the boat capsized due to overloading at about 8:30 pm on Tuesday, October 1, 2024.
“Local divers and community volunteers in addition to critical stakeholders carried out search and rescue operation.
“150 persons were rescued alive, 42 corpses comprising two females, 39 males and one child have been recovered so far.”
According to NEMA, the dead have been buried according to Islamic rites while the search and recovery operation continues.
