No fewer than 38 persons have lost their lives in six boat accidents in the country between January and May 2023, Saturday PUNCH learnt on Friday.
The fatalities, which involved the passengers and the boat operators, were attributed to overloading, careless driving, poor boat maintenance, and non-usage of life jackets.
In January, 10 were killed, while one person lost his life in February, 12 in April, and 15 in May.
On May 9, no fewer than 15 girls were reported dead after a boat accident at Dandeji village in the Shagari Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
The girls were on their way to a nearby bush to fetch firewood when the boat capsized.
On April 7, three persons were confirmed dead and several others were declared missing after a boat conveying goods and passengers capsized in Bayelsa State.
It was learnt that the boat, which usually conveyed about a hundred passengers, who were mainly traders, capsized on the Yenagoa-Brass waterways near Okoroma in Nembe Local Government Area.
On January 4, 10 bodies were recovered after a boat carrying more than 100 women and children.
The boat had broken apart on a river in Kebbi State. The accident occurred as the vessel returning from a farm on the River Niger broke in half as it approached Samanaji village in the Koko-Besse district.
The National President of the Association of Tourist Boat Operators and Water Transport of Nigeria, Ganiyu Tarzan, who recently spoke to The PUNCH, said it had been a tug of war getting passengers to put on life jackets.
Tarzan said, “Passengers need to be educated about life and the importance of life jackets.
“We usually talk to the state chairmen to educate their members on safety measures to ensure that all passengers in their boat put on life jackets. It is true that life jackets are expensive but not as expensive as life itself.”
