Mother luck was the saving grace of about 70 mourners whose boat capsized on Saturday at Buruku River in Buruku Local Government Area of Benue State.
It was gathered that the people, numbering about 70, had gone for a burial ceremony and, while returning, the wooden boat in which they were travelling capsized.
Confirming the incident in a telephone interview on Saturday, the Chairman of the local government, Raymond Zege, said that the victims were mourners from neighbouring Gboko LGA.
According to him, the mourners had embarked on the journey by boat, but the engine of the boat developed a fault while they were still on the water.
According to him, the situation became difficult as the passengers were struggling to manoeuvre the boat and remain afloat.
Unfortunately, due to overloading and the weight of the wooden boat, it was reported that the boat and the other boat that came to rescue the passengers sank.
He said: “They are people from Gboko LG, they went for a burial to cross to other side but on their way back they overloaded the boat and the engine failed, you know most of them are not conversant with water sound and they became panic and in the process began to struggle.
“But before they could get to the other boat coming to rescue them they ran into water waves and the weight of the boat made it to sink, as at time of talking we don’t know the exact figure that are missing.”
He added: “There are over 70 people on board but we have not seen about six persons.”
The chairman, however, raised concerns about safety compliance among commuters, adding that authorities had provided life jackets for commuters, with the intention that every person using the boat crossing should wear one.
“But the enforcement of life-jacket has become difficult because some passengers always complain about health-related discomfort or other reasons for not wearing the jackets.
“This has made enforcement difficult for maritime personnel.”
Earlier, in a statement, the Commissioner for Marine and Blue Economy, Denis Iyaghigba, said that he had received preliminary reports of the unfortunate boat mishap.
According to the Commissioner, the preliminary information available to him showed that the boat was ferrying passengers when a strong water current swept it into an abandoned barge at a corner of the river, consequent upon which the boat tumbled.
“I wish to assure members of the public, particularly families of those who may have been aboard the boat, to remain calm and await verified information from the appropriate authorities. No effort will be spared to ensure their safety.”
