How boat mishaps wiped out families in Niger villages

Concerns have continued to trail the October 1, 2024 boat mishap that claimed no fewer than 44 lives in the Gbajibo community in Mokwa LGA of Niger State.

Two more bodies were recovered by local divers and officials of the Boat Owners and Freshwater Association, bringing the total number of deaths to 44 on Sunday, the village head of Gbajibo, Alhaji Ahmadu Ibrahim told Daily Trust.

Gbajibo, an agrarian and fishing community is at the centre of River Niger, connecting Jebba and Lokoja, Kogi State as well as New Bussa and Kainji in Niger State.

The community has witnessed a series of boat mishaps mostly involving farmers on their way to farm. Residents said boat and canoe mishaps were a regular occurrence but only few got reported. Many homes have nearly gone into extinction due to the number of deaths in such families.

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Weeks and years after boat and canoe mishaps have occurred, families of the deceased victims said they were yet to recover from their losses. They said many homes have become empty due to the deaths arising from boat and canoe mishaps over the years.

Yankede is a small village, just some meters away from Gbajibo community where the boat and canoe landing points are located. The community of about 45 people had lost more than half of its population in boat and canoe mishaps between 2023 and 2024.

The Makun Gbajibo, Prince Abdullahi Ibrahim said in September 2023, about 30 people from the village died in a single boat mishap on their way to farm.

“We are very much worried about these incessant boat mishaps. Last year, many people died on boat and canoe on their way to farm.  

There’s a village called Yankede under Gbajibo District, where more than half of the people in that village have been wiped out by boat mishaps. The population of the village was just around 40 people and more than 20 of them died in a boat mishap last year. So, where you have 40 people in a village and 30 of them died at once, the village is gone. If you go to their houses now, what you just see are empty rooms. It touched all of us. We are not happy that this kept happening,” Makun said.

He said with the recent incident, the community had set up a committee to see to the end of the recurring incident.

He blamed most of the incidents to overloading and night travels and called on the National Inland Waterways Authority, the state and federal governments to provide them with adequate life jackets.

Also speaking with Weekend Trust, a 55 Zubairu Dafa, said his family lost 30 members in a single boat mishap in 2023 on their way to farm.

“Boat Mishaps that occurred here in Gbajibo have wiped out many families. In 2023, my family lost 23 women including my daughter and seven men in a single boat mishap. They were all going to a farm to harvest melons when the incident happened. In that mishap, only the driver survived.

“Gbajibo was devastated that fateful day. It was a disaster. It has not been easy for us to bear it.  

“As I speak with you, many of their children are orphans now struggling with life. In some houses now, you find only three people remaining; the rest have died in boat mishaps. In some houses with 20 members, what you find now are eight men without their women; they have died in boat mishaps.  And most men who have lost their wives and have not been able to remarry since last year. If you go to some homes, you see empty rooms,” Dafa explained.

Also, 17-year-old Masahuda Mohammed said she had lost both her parents. Her mother had earlier died before her father lost his life in the recent incident.

Mohammed told Daily Trust she now lives with her mother’s elder sister.

“I received a call that fateful day that my father was involved in a boat mishap. His body was recovered three days after and buried alongside other victims. I am devastated. I don’t feel okay now since the incident. How do I live my life now without my mother and my father” she said.

Usman Abubakar from Gbajibo told our correspondent that following the recurrence of the mishaps, some people have migrated from their communities to avoid water transportation.

“If you go to some villages now, you won’t find anybody there. Many have lost their lives and some have migrated to avoid anything that would bring them in contact with water transport. These mishaps have persisted because of the nature of the canoes and boats being used.

“Also, we need to have policemen stationed at the landing and take-off points to arrest and prosecute any passenger that resists the use of life jackets or any boat operator that overloads his boat or travels in the night. Government and concerned agencies should also support us with life jackets because we cannot do without water transport”, he said.

Driver of ill-fated boat flees community

Also on Sunday, our correspondent gathered that the residence of the boat driver of October 1 mishap, Mallam Jazuli was attacked by some of the aggrieved families of victims of the incident who demanded justice for their deceased family members.

The driver of the boat was reported to have fled earlier in the night of the incident just before the victims’ families took on his family on Sunday, one of the residents said. His family also reportedly fled from the community on Sunday.

“The aggrieved relatives have accused the driver of negligence and disregard for human life by overloading the boat. The driver has fled to Yauri, Kebbi State after the incident because some aggrieved relatives of victims threatened to kill him”, one of the rescue marshals said.

FG bans night travels

The federal government had on Tuesday announced a total ban on night travels and overloading in waterways.

The Managing Director of NIWA, Bola Oyebamiji who announced the ban during a condolence visit to the families of the recent victims’ said travels on water was now only allowed between 7am and 6pm, warning that any boat operator or passenger traveling after the stipulated hours would be arrested and made to face the law.

Oyebamiji also unveiled waterways marshals to monitor and enforce water transport safety regulations in the area and promised big fibre passenger ferry as well as patrol and ambulance boats to reduce the rate of mishaps.

“We have what it takes to police the waterways. We have raised our bar. The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy has already inaugurated 80 waterway marshals and since that inauguration, we have intensified efforts to provide more marshals so that our waterways can be policed very well,” he said.

Only few accidents reported – Boat owners

The Chairman, Boat Owners and Freshwater Association in Niger State, Attahiru Bawa Isah told Daily Trust that boat and canoe mishaps were regular occurrences on River Niger at the Gbaji axis but only few were reported.

Isah said in the first week of September this year, a canoe capsized killing four out of 10 women on their way to farm.

“This year alone, this is the second mishap. Whatever God has destined to happen must happen but there is negligence on the water transportation. We blamed the one that happened recently on overloading.

“We don’t have the power to prosecute or punish anybody. But the National Inland Waterways Authority should begin to punish the violators of water transport safety regulations. The agency needs to do more beyond just sensitization. Each time the incident happens, the drivers disappear perhaps because of fear of attack by families of victims,” he said.