ABUJA— At least 76 people were killed after a boat capsized in the southern state of Anambra at the weekend, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said.
In a statement, Buhari acknowledged that rescue agencies had officially reported the death toll of the tragedy on Friday and expressed his grief.
A passenger boat carrying 85 people capsized in the Ogbaru area of Anambra State on Friday, following rising floods in that area, according to the statement.
An investigation had been launched to determine “other causes of the incident” besides floods, Thickman Tanimu, the southeast zonal coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), was quotes as saying by local media.
Following the tragedy, Nigeria’s National Inland Waterways Authority and the NEMA have embarked on rescue and recovery missions in Anambra.
Buhari said he has directed other rescue and relief agencies to rush to the site, urging the relevant government agencies to check the safety protocols on local transport ferries to make sure such incidents can be avoided in the future.
Meanwhile, eight people were killed and two others injured following a road accident in central Nigeria late Saturday, road safety police said on Sunday.
Two vehicles collided on Lamingo Road in Jos North, the state of Plateau, said Peter Langsan, spokesman for Nigeria’s Federal Road Safety Corps in the state, in a statement.
The injured were taken to a public hospital in Jos city. The official said the speeding of the vehicles led to the eventual head-on collision.
Langsan urged drivers to always be cautious, especially when they are at high speed or about to overtake other vehicles.
Deadly road accidents are frequently reported in Nigeria with overloading, bad road conditions and reckless driving as main causes.
Source: Nam News Network