A wooden boat carrying more than 70 mourners and over 30 motorcycles capsized on Saturday morning while crossing the River Katsina-Ala at the Buruku Local Government Area of Benue State.
The incident which occurred at about 11.00am at the Buruku crossing point as the mourners, has left several passengers unaccounted for.
The victims, mostly from Mbayon in Gboko Local Government Area, were returning from a burial ceremony held on the opposite side of the river.
Several passengers were rescued after the boat overturned, while search and rescue teams continued efforts on Saturday afternoon to locate those still missing.
An eyewitness said the boat was heavily loaded with passengers and motorcycles when its engine reportedly developed a fault in the middle of the river.
“The boat was overloaded with many people and over 30 motorcycles, and they were coming from the Logo Local Government Area side of the River at about 11.00am when the incident happened.
“Many persons have been rescued, but as we speak, I cannot tell you the actual number of persons that have not been seen or rescued from the river because the search is still ongoing. But many persons have not been seen as we speak,” the source.
Confirming the incident, the Chairman of Buruku Local Government Area, Raymond Zege, said the passengers were mourners from Gboko who had travelled across the river to attend a burial.
Zege said the boat was carrying more than 70 people when its engine failed during the return trip, causing panic among those on board.
“The victims were mourners from Gboko who went for a burial on the other side of the river.
“They boarded a boat which was overloaded with over 70 persons.
“In the middle of the journey the engine of the boat failed, and they became panicky.
“And they also ran into a heavy wave, and the boat capsized before the boat that was sent to rescue them got to them,” he said.
The council chairman said authorities had yet to establish the exact number of missing passengers, although more than 60 people had reportedly been rescued.
“At the time we speak, we do not know the number of persons missing.
“So far we have not seen about six persons, but we have rescued over 60.
“Search and rescue operations are ongoing,” he said.
Zege urged residents and other passengers who use the waterway to comply with maritime safety regulations, particularly the requirement to wear life jackets.
He said the local government had supplied life jackets to commuters using the route but noted that some passengers had resisted efforts by maritime officials to enforce their use.
“People can be very difficult. There is a law, and we have provided life jackets for every commuter crossing that route.
“When they come and the maritime workers try to enforce the law, some commuters complain that they have health issues or that they do not want to share life jackets used by other people.
“We have provided the jackets, and the state government is also supporting efforts to ensure that maritime safety regulations are enforced,” he said.
The chairman added that maritime officials sometimes carried out enforcement operations at night and appealed to passengers to cooperate with them.
“Sometimes the maritime officials come for enforcement, including at night. People should cooperate with them because the safety measures are meant to protect lives,” he said.
Search and rescue operations were still underway, with authorities yet to provide a final figure for the total number of passengers on board or those still missing.
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