Two Drown as Boat Capsizes in Niger

Laleye Dipo in Minna

Two men believed to be fresh graduates of the Niger State College of Education, Minna, Sunday morning drowned in River Niger.

The two, Sulaiman Ibrahim, 25, and Tanko Abako Hassan, 23, died in the river at Bina village in Lapai Local Government Area of the state when the boat in which they were travelling capsized.

According to the villagers, the deceased boarded the canoe to take them to their rice farms, which was said to have been submerged by flood following torrential rainfall Sunday morning.

A Fulani woman, who witnessed the incident, reportedly alerted other villagers but by the time the villagers got to the river bank, only the capsized canoe was seen.

As at the time of this report, the remains of both Ibrahim and Hassan were yet to be found.

A community leader in the area, Alhaji Audu Kpata, when contacted, confirmed the incident, saying the relations of the deceased had been informed.

Kpata attributed the flood this year to heavy rainfall which had made most rivers to break their banks.

“The last time we witnessed this type of flood was in 2012,” the community leader said, adding that most farmlands had either been submerged or totally washed away.

When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), Malam Ibrahim Audu Hussaini, said the agency was yet to receive the report.