A passenger boat carrying more than 100 people, including women and children, capsized in the Benue River on Saturday afternoon.
A Daily Trust report revealed that the passengers were mostly local traders returning to Binnari, a community in Karim. Lamido Local Government from the Mayorenero fish market in Ardo – Kola Local Government, all in Taraba State, north-central Nigeria.
Taraba has important rivers that are part of the tributaries of the Benue River.
The ship capsized around 3:30 p.m.
None of the passengers were wearing life jackets.
The acting president of the state’s Inland Water Transporters, Jidda Mayorenero, told the newspaper that about 15 bodies were recovered after the accident.
The acting chairman of Ardo-Kola local government, Dalhatu Kawu, also confirmed the accident to the newspaper. He described it as tragic.
Saturday’s mishap is the latest in a series of boat accidents in coastal states across the country.
A few weeks ago, a boat carrying 40 passengers from Niger State to Kebbi State capsized.
In September, 26 people lost their lives in a boat accident in Niger State, while another 15 people died in another incident in Adamawa State.
States such as Kwara, Kogi, Niger, Adamawa, Kebbi, Sokoto and Kano witness a high rate of boat mishaps attributed to various reasons including lack of life jackets, overloading of boats and violations of reasons security, among others.
