21 people have been reported missing in Kebbi State in a canoe mishap which occurred in Yauri River in Yauri local government area of the state.
The incident took place on Monday when the overloaded canoe from Niger State sank.
The chairman of Yauri local government area, Hon Bala Mohammed Gagga, while briefing journalists said the incident occurred on Monday when the captain of the canoe carrying over 40 passengers, their luggage and animals from Kasabo village in Agura local government area of Niger State sank in Yauri River of Kebbi State.
Gagga said a rescue team had been deployed to the scene to search for the victims.
According to him, two of the passengers, a man and a woman had been rescued and admitted at the General Hospital in Yauri. The council boss said the canoe sank due to overload.
Another account said four dead bodies were recovered and 11 were rescued alive.
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Executive director of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Abbas Rabiu Kamba, told LEADERSHIP that he was with the rescue team in Yauri where the search for the victims had continued.
Also, the spokesperson of the state police command, Nafi’u Abubakar, confirmed the accident.
He said the command was still awaiting the final report of the incident from the police divisional office of the area and the number of casualties and those evacuated alive.
Meanwhile, Governor Nasir Idris of Kebbi State has visited the scene of the incident where he sympathised with the Emir of Yauri, Dr Zayyanu Mohammed Abdullahi, people of the area and families of the yet-to-be-identified victims.
The governor appealed to the affected families to accept the incident as the will of God and in good faith.
As of the time of filing this report, the rescuers were still searching for the victims of the accident.
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