THE National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has confirmed a fresh fatal boat mishap at the Jaranja River in the Shagari Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
The latest accident was the third within a month in the state.
Area Manager of NIWA in the state, Bala Bello, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday, August 29, in Sokoto that two people died, while nine injured victims were rescued in the latest tragedy.
Bello, who said the incident occurred Friday afternoon, attributed it to carelessness, overloading and safety rules violation.
He explained that a rescue team, comprising officials from NIWA, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the State Emergency Management Agency, and the Red Cross Society, had been mobilised to the scene.
He added that the team confirmed the casualty figures while search and rescue operations were ongoing to locate the missing persons.
Bello restated that NIWA had been engaging riverine communities on safety measures, guidelines, the use of life jackets and other safety kits on water.
The NEMA’s Head of Rescue and Rehabilitation, Tukur Abubakar, who was also at the scene, confirmed that local divers had recovered one body while another, a female passenger, remained missing.
The latest tragedy comes barely a week after four people died in a boat mishap at Kojiyo village in Goronyo Local Government Area of the state.
In the accident, which occurred on August 17, 41 passengers were rescued and five declared missing.
The NEMA later disclosed that the death toll rose after the recovery of an additional body during its multi-agency operation, which also involved community divers.
Recall that another incident occurred at Faji Community in Sabon Birni Local Government Area of the state on August 22.
Boat mishaps are frequent on Nigeria’s waterways, often caused by overcrowding and poorly maintained vessels, particularly during the rainy season when rivers and lakes overflow their banks.
In December 2024, the head of operations for NEMA in Kogi State, Justin Uwazuruonye, confirmed that 54 bodies were recovered from a boat accident involving about 200 traders in the state.
Uwazuruonye pointed out that the lack of a passenger manifest made it challenging to ascertain the exact number of people on board.
Similarly, in August 2024, at least 16 farmers lost their lives in Sokoto State after a wooden canoe conveying them across a river to their rice fields capsized.
Also on July 29, 2025, six young girls drowned in north-western Jigawa State when the boat transporting them home from farm work overturned midstream.
Just two days earlier, on July 27, another tragedy struck in central Niger State, where at least 13 people were killed in a separate boat accident.
A reporter with the ICIR
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