Four bodies recovered, 12 missing as boat capsizes in Lagos

Four bodies have so far been recovered, while 12 passengers are still missing after the boat, they boarded from Mile 2 en route Ibeshe in the Ojo area of Lagos State, capsized. These include a 52-year-old male and 20 years female.

The General Manager, Lagos State Waterways Authority, LASWA, Oluwadanilola Emmanuel, said that four bodies had been recovered, while search operations were ongoing.

No fewer than 16 passengers were missing after the boat they boarded from Mile 2 en route Ibeshe in Ojo area of Lagos State reportedly capsized along the Ojo area of the state.

The Boat which took off from Mile 2 to Ibeshe in the Ojo axis capsized due to operation at night against the inland waterways’ rules.

 The incident happened at about 7.45 pm, it was found out that the tide of the water drifted the boat to a stationary barge which caused the boat to overturn.

The incident reportedly occurred on Friday night. It cannot be confirmed if all the passengers including the captain were wearing life but some people claimed some of them were wearing their life jackets which may not be effective.

The Area Manager, National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Engr Sarat Braimah, who confirmed the incident in a statement, said the boat had been recovered, but search-and-rescue for the victims were ongoing.

According to her, the occupants contravened safety rules by not wearing reflective jackets before boarding.

She said, “At about 7.45 p.m. today (yesterday), July 8, the National Inland Waterways Authority, NIWA, and Lagos State waterways authority received a distress call of an incident on the waterways.

“A W19 passenger fibre boat carrying 16 people capsized along the Ojo area of the state.

“The boat, going from Mile 2 to Ibeshe in Ojo axis, broke the waterways rules of late travelling by setting sail at 7.45 pm.

“As it set out, the tide drifted the boat to a stationary barge which caused the boat to overturn.

“It is said that all passengers on board, which includes children, were not all putting on their life jackets.

“The Search and Rescue team of the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), National Inland Waterways (NIWA), and Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) were immediately mobilized to the scene of the incident.

“But unfortunately, they could only find the boat after several hours, while efforts are still ongoing to locate the victims.

“The boat is currently in the custody of Marine Police. The Boat Captain is also unaccounted for as at the time of this press release,” said the engineer.

The search-and-rescue operation is still ongoing.