THE Taraba State Government has stated that twenty corpses from a recent boat disaster have been found.
Saviour Noku, the state’s Commissioner for Special Duties and Social Development, made the announcement immediately after visiting the Binneri community with the state deputy governor, where the boat capsized last Saturday.
In an interview following an on-the-spot assessment and condolences to the affected community and families, state Deputy Governor Aminu Alkali banned night trips on waterways.
When the Deputy Governor arrived, he was informed that fishermen’s attempts to trap fish had resulted in barricades on the rivers.
He directed that all river obstacles be removed within seven days. According to him, the state government would no longer tolerate boat or canoe overloading or movement without passenger manifests and life jackets.
He maintained that the government would conduct a thorough investigation to determine the root cause of the boat accident and punish those responsible.
”Our visit here is to ensure three principle issues, to stop overloading, to ensure that there will be no more night travelling and the canoes or boats must have passengers manifest so that whatever happens we can easily identify one’s relations,” he said.
”They should also ensure they have life jackets for passengers for protection because not all persons can swim. The colossal loss witnessed in the state is regrettable and the government has directed that the barricades be removed within seven days.”
Some of the drowned passengers are gradually floating and decomposing on the water’s surface.
According to the investigation, the boat was packed with bags of cement, building irons, food supplies, animals, and over 100 passengers, including children. However, it collided with a wooden barricade on the waterways, causing it to capsize.
A community member who spoke on the condition of anonymity stated that the amount grows on a regular basis, but community officials bury it without exposing the exact number to avoid being questioned by the state government for overloading.
”We got stocked on the water two hours after take-off due to some barricades made by fishermen. I tried all I could to maneuver, but I did not succeed which led to the ugly incident,” he said.
”About 50 to 60 passengers got drowned, while some managed to swim out.”
Suleiman Audu is a middle-aged businessman who lost his sister and her baby in the accident.
He revealed that he was at the river bank when the boat took off from Mayoreniyo and was called five hours later to be informed that his sister and baby were yet to arrive at their destination.
”When I was called to be informed that my sister and she had not arrived at their destination, I knew there was trouble so I hurriedly called my friends and we went in search of the boat, just to be informed where people gathered that they could not survive it,” the man said.
Residents added that, while this is not the first time this has happened, it is the first time the state administration has come to sympathize with them, and they are grateful.
They went on to say that they want the fisherman to completely remove the obstacles to avoid future accidents.
