A tragic boat mishap is feared to have claimed the lives of three persons, two of whom are confirmed to be from the same family, in Lapai Local Government Area of Niger State.
According to Vanguard, the incident occurred around 9 p.m. on Tuesday when the overloaded boat, carrying over 200 bags of rice, capsized due to a heavy windstorm.
While some sources claimed multiple fatalities, a source close to the incident confirmed that only three people were on board, and all of them drowned.
The source said that the bags of rice were purchased in Lapai council and were being transported to Lokoja, Kogi State, for sale, stating that, “The boat was overloaded with bags of rice from our area-Lapai thereby occupying all available spaces in the canoe. Two of those who went on the journey are of the same parents and believed to have most of the bags of rice being transported for sale. The bags of rice are more than 200 and the storm which started on their way must have also contributed to the sudden accident.”
The Niger State Emergency Management Agency was contacted for more information. Public Relations Officer, Hussaini Ibrahim, stated that the agency was yet to receive details of the incident and promised to issue a statement later.
At press time, the corpses of those feared dead had yet to be recovered.
