Not less than 30 persons have reportedly drowned on Monday, as a boat carrying over 50 passengers capsized in Yauri Local Government Area of Kebbi State.
The Chairman of Yauri LGA, Bala Yauri, confirmed the tragic event, saying the incident has left the people of the local government in deep sorrow.
He said efforts are in top gear by local divers to locate the corpses of the passengers who drowned in the river.
“From the information I gathered, more than fifty persons were involved in the accident while some of them escaped but as of now that I am talking to you, over thirty of them as still trapped in the river.
“We have mobilised the local divers to try and locate bodies of the victims for proper evacuation and possibly befitting burials in accordance with Islamic rights.
“The boat as I heard carried passengers who are mostly traders from either Niger State or Kebbi State alongside foodstuffs for sell before the unfortunate incident”
Also, a witness of the incident, Alhaji Sani Yauri, confirmed that the accident occured because the driver lost control of the boat due to a heavy wind.
“I was there when the incident happened, it was as a result of heavy wind which resulted in the driver of the boat losing control and it capsized immediately”
