At least 46 people died and 16 remain missing in Goronyo, northwest Nigeria, after the capsizing of a boat in a river carrying nearly 80 people.
“So far, 46 bodies have been recovered and 15 people were rescued alive,” reported the spokesperson for the Sokoto State Police Command, Ahmed Rufai, in statements collected by the Nigerian newspaper Punch.
According to the police spokesperson, “the rescue team, made up of local divers, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), and the Police, continues the search for the remaining 16 people.”
He then detailed that “77 people were on board the boat at the time of the incident,” adding that the causes of the accident remain unknown while rescue operations continue.
According to authorities, most of the passengers on board the boat were heading to work on farms in the city of Gorau, in the local government area of Goronyo, in that state.
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Samaila Garba, 55 years old and a resident of the area, stated that his 13-year-old granddaughter, Jamila Usman, was among the fatalities of the capsizing.
He added that he had counted at least 42 bodies, mostly women and children. “As you know, during the rainy season, many women and children go to the fields to work,” he explained to the AP agency.
Another local resident, Aminu Dan Hajiya, said he goes to his farm via the same channel and considers himself lucky not to have been on the boat. “In fact, almost every household in the community has been affected”, he assured.
For his part, Usman Yusuf, community leader of Gorau, stated that he believed there were more than 80 passengers who boarded the boat, then noted that so far 41 victims have been buried.
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