In brief
In a tragic incident, at least 32 people have died after a boat capsized in the River Niger while carrying over 100 passengers. The overloaded vessel struck a submerged tree stump during its journey. Authorities are conducting search operations as investigations into the incident and existing water safety regulations are underway.
At least 32 people have died in Nigeria's northern Niger state after a boat sank in a river, an official has told the BBC.
The boat was reportedly overloaded, carrying about 100 passengers including women and children, capsized when it struck a submerged tree stump on the River Niger in the Borgu area on Tuesday morning.
They were on their way to a nearby village to pay their respects to the family of someone who had recently died.
Abdullahi Baba Ara, the spokesman of the National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) in the state, told BBC Hausa on Thursday that more than 50 other people had been rescued, with eight still missing.
Search operations are continuing.
Mr. Ara said the government had set up a team of water marshals to stop boat operators from overloading their vessels and ensure passengers wear life jackets.
Perhaps the water marshals were not on duty when this boat took off, he said, adding that investigations had started.
A local district head told the Reuters news agency that he had been at the scene soon after the accident.
I was at the scene yesterday around 12 pm until 4 pm. The boat carried more than 100 people. We were able to recover 31 corpses from the river. The boat was also recovered and removed, Reuters quoted Sa'adu Inuwa Muhammad as saying.
Boat accidents are fairly common in Nigeria, often due to overloading, poor regulation, and inadequate safety precautions.
In December last year, 54 bodies were recovered from the River Niger after a boat that may have been carrying more than 200 passengers capsized.
The government has made it mandatory for water travelers to always wear life jackets, but this is often not enforced.
Niger state is Nigeria's largest by land mass and people tend to travel a lot by water as it is often the fastest and cheapest means of getting around.
