NIGER, Nigeria – Mediaage NG News – No fewer than eight persons died and dozens still missing, after a boat capsized in a river in north-central Niger state on Monday, according to emergency service officials.
The victims are residents of Dugga village, and were travelling to neighbouring Kebbi state on business to sell grain and sugar cane.
According to the spokesperson of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Ibrahim Hussaini said that five women and three men had died.
Ten other persons were rescued, and search and rescue operations were continuing, he added.
More than 1,200 people have lost their lives in boat accidents across Nigeria between 2018 to 2023, according to the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR).
Overcrowding, the unavailability of life jackets and poor maintenance have been blamed for the accidents.