33 Dead In River Niger Boat At Capsize - Nigeria.
The Nigerian National Emergency Management (NEMA) said on Friday that at least 33 people drowned after an overloaded boat carrying traders from Niger capsized in Roiver Niger northwest of the country.
The chairman of Bagudo local government, Alhaji Muhammed Kaura Zagga told newsmen that majority of the traders were travelling from Gaya in the Dosso region of southern Niger to Lolo, in the Baguda area of Kebbi state, when the accident happened on Wednesday morning.
The Niger authorities had deployed 500 divers to search for the remaining traders still missing, he added.
“Eighty-four passengers were rescued by Nigerian and Nigerien rescue officials and the assistance of local divers,” he told AFP.
“Thirty-three bodies were salvaged from the river while 23 are still missing.
“Having spent two days on the water, we presume they are all dead.”
Cross-border trade is common in the remote area, with traders mainly travelling to markets from Niger to Nigeria to buy and sell goods from grain to livestock.
Weather conditions at the time of the capsize were calm, despite the rainy season, which earlier this week saw the authorities in Niger warn about potential flooding.
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