BY GODWIN OBI
A boat mishap has occured in Niger State leading to the death of two persons while many sustained major injuries.
The accident occurred in Katcha, headquarters of Katcha Local Government Area, last Friday.
Our correspondent, who reliably gathered that the boat, as at the time of the accident, was carrying no fewer than 50 passengers, said several corpses were still being searched for by local divers in the area.
An eye witness, who narrated the incident to Frontline Reporters said the boat was gutted by fire when it was about to take off after the close of the weekly market transactions in Katcha town.
The eye witness said: “From what we saw, the boat was carrying no less than 50 passengers and goods worth millions of naira. The boat was gutted by fire as it was about to take off from Katcha to go and drop the passengers in their different destinations including part of Niger and Kogi states.” He, however, said many were rescued alive by the local divers and those who sustained injuries were receiving treatment in different hospitals within the state.
Meanwhile, the state governor, Alhaji Mohammed Bago, expressed shock over the incident in what he termed becoming too frequent.
Bago, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Bologi Ibrahim, described the incident as “terrible and painful.”
Bago also called on the relevant stakeholders to take proactive measures that would put an end to the trend.
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