3rd April, 2014
Kazeem Ugbodaga
At least eight people have been confirmed dead and 12 rescued as another boat capsized in Lagos, southwest Nigeria, on Wednesday evening.
The National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, confirmed eight people dead in the boat mishap which occurred between Eko Bridge and Ikorodu Waterway around 6.00pm on Wednesday.
The boat was said to have taken off at Ebute Ero and was heading to Majidun in Ikorodu when the tragedy occurred. Most of the people in the boat were said to be returning from work on the Island.
At least 26 people were said to be on the boat as at the time it capsized, but it was not clear if the passengers wore life jackets when the tragedy occurred.
Local divers, marine policemen, navy marine, police disaster rescue team, officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Authority, LASEMA, and the National Inland Waterways Authority were involved in the rescue operation.
NEMA spokesperson, Ibrahim Farinloye said the boat belonged to the Bell Marine Services, a registered boat operator between Lagos Island and Ikorodu, saying that “the ill-fated boat took off from Ebute Ero to Majidun.”
Management of the boat services, Bell Marine Services said the boat hit a rock before capsizing and that no one was missing as there were about 20 people in the boat.
According to him, in the last few days, there had been some boat mishaps in the same area as reports suggested that the sea was not stable when the last few incidents occurred due to bad weather condition.
He appealed to boat operators to be observant to ensure that the sea is not turbulent before embarking on trips in order to save the lives of the people.
Farinloye said the agency was going to train boat operators on how to observe the condition of the sea before embarking on trips.
About three weeks ago, a boat capsized in Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos. During the mishap, 13 people drowned and a few others were rescued.