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Nigeria: Over 100 people missing after boat capsizes

Published October 2, 2024last updated October 2, 2024

A search operation has rescued 150 people and recovered 16 bodies. Officials said the vessel was filled to roughly three times its capacity.

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Passengers at Ikorodu ferry terminal inside the boat in Lagos on July 19, 2024.
Boats are a common mode of transport in Nigeria, but not all vessels observe the safety standards more common in places like Lagos (pictured here)Image: OLUKA LEVI/AFP

More than 100 people, mostly women and children, are missing after a wooden boat sank on Tuesday in the Niger River in northern Nigeria, authorities reported.  

The boat was carrying nearly 300 passengers, three times its capacity, who were returning from a religious festival. The accident happened around 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday.  

"The boat was not supposed to carry more than 100 persons, but there were almost 300 people on it. And that was what resulted in the breakage of the boat," said Salihu Garba, director of relief and rehabilitation at the state emergency services.

A spokesman for Niger state's emergency services, Ibrahim Audu Husseini, later told the AFP news agency that 16 dead bodies had been found, 14 women and two men.

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At least 150 people were rescued by emergency workers and volunteers in a frantic search operation. Additionally, 11 bodies, nine men and two women, were recovered from the river.  

"The search and rescue operation is still ongoing to locate more survivors," Abdullahi Baba Arah, head of Niger State Emergency Management Agency, said.

This is the fourth fatal boat accident in northern Nigeria since mid-2023. The lack of adequate roads in the region makes boat usage more common, with accidents often attributed to poorly maintained boats or overcrowding.

fmf/msh (AP, Reuters)