At least eight persons have now been confirmed dead following a boat accident that happened at Jumbam village in Tarmuwa local government of Yobe state on Saturday. A boat accident occurred on Saturday afternoon when two passengers were reported drowned on transit to Babangida weekly market where a boat capsized with passengers. The Yobe State Emergency Management Agency, YOSEMA, has disclosed more details following the incident that made some local marketers meet their ill-fated day when they got capsized.
According to the Executive Secretary of YOSEMA, Mohammed Goje, seven more passengers were discovered during a rescue operation by his men.
Goje revealed that eight other passengers were hospitalized at the Dapchi General Hospital in Bursari local Govt Area receiving treatment.
Goje said, “There are also eight people that are injured and are on admission at General Hospital at Dapchi. I must tell you that all of them are stable. We would have moved them to the Teaching Hospital in Damaturu but because of the difficult situation it is very difficult, so it is better they are stabilized at the nearest hospital,”
The YOSEMA boss disclosed that the boat capsized because it was overloaded.
Vigil360 learned that the road leading to the village got washed away by a heavy downpour that was recorded some weeks ago making the villagers resort to water transportation using available canoes at their disposal.
A statement on the official Facebook page of YOSEMA revealed that the relief agency, following the directives of Governor Mai Mala Buni, embarked on rescue operations. It also sought alternative ways to access the trapped communities with relief items.
Governor Buni, who earlier expressed sadness at the incident, is expected to visit the community today Sunday for an on-the-spot assessment and the impact of the flood to also commiserate with victims.
The governor through his spokesman Mammam Mohammed had on Saturday commiserated with the people over the boat mishap.
The statement said the governor was “saddened” by the incident.
Boats are seldom used in Yobe state and many parts of the northern states in Nigeria because of their semi-arid nature, and few places that are being used, there are no laws guiding the operators.
