No fewer than 18 persons have died after a boat they were commuting in capsized at Zango Majiya village in Itas-Gadau Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
The incident was said to have occurred on Thursday, November 13 when one Nuhu Kaila of Zango Majiya village ferried 23 people who were heading to their farms. The boat was overcrowded forcing it to capsize.
Confirming the incident to newsmen, the spokesperson of the state police command, DSP Ahmed Mohammed Wakil, said medical doctors in the state-certified 18 persons dead while 5 were rescued.
Wakili said upon receiving the report of the unfortunate incident, the Divisional Police Officer of Itas Gidau station and a team of policemen rushed to the scene where corpses were removed from the river and taken to General Hospital Itas, for postmortem examination.
The police spokesperson gave the names of the deceased as: Abdulraham shehu ‘m’ aged 20yrs, Suwaiba Yusuf ‘f’ aged 12yrs old, Saude Abdulkarim’ F ‘aged 14yrs old, Fatima Maigari ‘f’ aged 10yrs, Zuwaira Maigari ‘f’ aged 10yrs, Hari Maigari ‘f’ aged 9yrs, Hussaina Maigari ‘f’ aged 8yrs.
Others are; Ummani Abdulkarim ‘f’ aged 15yrs, Halima Saminu ‘f’ aged 15yrs, of Gidan Ganji village, Najaatu Hamza ‘f’ aged 15yrs, Nura Abdullahi ‘m’ aged 25yrs, Yahuza Abdullahi ‘f’ aged 12yrs, Hafsa Abdullahi ‘f’ aged 11yrs, of Majiya village.
Sadiya Hashimu ‘f’ aged 10yrs, Khadija Alhassan ‘f’ aged 15yrs, of Gwarai village, Amina Idris ‘f’ aged 15yrs, Kaltime Hudu ‘f’ aged 14yrs, Furaira Malam Magaji ‘f’ aged 14yrs, of Zangon Majiya village who were all drowned in the river and died on the spot.
He added that the boat driver, one Aisha Adamu ‘f’ aged 16yrs, Umaru Adamu ‘m’ aged 30yrs were rescued unconscious. He said the corpses have been deposited at the General Hospital Itas for postmortem examination.
