Six die in Niger boat mishap

At least six persons were confirmed dead in a boat in the Gbara area of Mokwa local government area of Niger State on Friday.

However, 37 persons had been rescued by emergency responders while five others are still missing.

The Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) confirmed the incident in a statement on Saturday in Minna, the state capital.

The statement read: “NSEMA has received a report of a boat mishap that occurred yesterday evening around 6:30 p.m. at the Gbara area of Mokwa LGA (River Kaduna).

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“The boat, which took off from Lanchikagi village of Lavun LGA, was heading to Gbara village. There were 48 passengers on board and they were said to be returning from Danchitagi village market (Lavun LGA) which comes up every Friday.

“As at the time of filing this report, 37 persons survived, six dead bodies were recovered and five persons still missing.

“The cause of the incident was a result of heavy downpour which was accompanied by a violent windstorm. Meanwhile, search and rescue operations are still ongoing.”

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