Niger boat tragedy: 20 more bodies recovered, families share heartbreaking stories

Twenty additional bodies have been recovered from the site of a tragic boat accident in Niger State, bringing the total number of recovered victims to 36. The wooden boat, carrying around 300 passengers from Kwara State to an event in Niger State, capsized on Tuesday at Gbajibo in the Mokwa Local Government Area.

The recovery efforts, carried out by local divers alongside officials from the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), have been ongoing since the disaster. According to Abdullahi Baba-Arah, Director-General of NSEMA, the initial recovery of 16 bodies, including two females and 14 males, occurred on Wednesday. These victims were buried on the Niger side of the Gbajibo community. An additional 20 bodies were found on Thursday, with search and rescue operations continuing.

Survivors and family members of the victims have shared their emotional experiences, as many of those affected were from the Kaiama Local Government Area in Kwara State, despite the incident occurring in Niger State.

One community member, Mahmud Gbajibo, described the profound impact the tragedy has had on his family and the community. “I lost seven family members—two married nieces, three nephews, and two younger brothers. They had all come for a naming ceremony, which was delayed because I was in Ilọrin,” Gbajibo said. The pain of losing loved ones led to scenes of deep anguish in the community. “After the incident, women were running naked in despair. No one is cooking or selling anything; the entire community is paralyzed.”

Gbajibo also highlighted the need for better transportation options, saying that many of the victims would not have boarded the boat had there been motorcycles available to navigate road paths to their destination. He appealed for motorcycles to be provided to prevent future reliance on unsafe boats.

Another resident, Haron Yohana, lost five members of his family. “I said goodbye, wishing them a safe trip, not knowing it would be the last time I’d see them alive. I lost my father, younger brother, and three nieces,” Yohana shared, adding that there was no immediate awareness of the accident. “It wasn’t until another boat passed through that the community learned what had happened.”

Yohana stressed the need for modern safety measures, such as life jackets and safer boats. “The boat was old, wooden, and overloaded. The river has claimed many lives recently—just last week, three people drowned,” he added.

An anonymous source from the community confirmed that the boat split in two due to overloading, and many victims were fathers and husbands, leaving numerous families without breadwinners.

In response to the tragedy, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu expressed his condolences to the government and people of Niger State. In a statement issued by his special adviser on information and strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu offered prayers for the victims and their families. He directed the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) to investigate the rising number of boat accidents in Niger State and across the country, and to implement measures to prevent future tragedies.

The president also called for stricter enforcement of safety regulations on inland waters, including the ban on night sailing, and extended his gratitude to the emergency workers and local divers who are continuing their efforts to find the remaining victims.