15 rescued, 20 bodies recovered from capsized boat in Nigeria

By Ibrahim Garba Shuaibu

KANO, Nigeria (AA) – Fifteen passengers were rescued alive and 20 bodies were retrieved from a messenger boat that capsized due to overload in northwestern Nigeria on Tuesday evening. The victims were mostly seminary students.

Officials said on Wednesday that at least 50 passengers were on board the ill-fated boat that capsized in the Badau River in Kano State owing to overload.

"So far, based on the information we received, as at this morning of Wednesday, there were 20 deaths, 7 in hospital and another 8 people were found (alive) this morning and the rescue operation is still going on,” Kano State Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje said in a statement.

The boat was ferrying about 50 people with some loads from Hayin Badau to Bagwai on their way to attend the Maulud celebration or Muslim festival, and that the boat capsized due to overload, he said and added, "And most of them were Islamiyyah students."

He emphasized, "I urge boat operators to always take the issue of overload very seriously."

An eyewitness Salmanu Badau told Anadolu Agency over the phone that the majority of the passengers were women and children.

He asserted that the victims of the tragic incident died in the river because they were unable to swim to the river's bank and were not wearing life jackets.