NIWA Deploys Rescue Team, Sets Up Probe Panel After Boat Capsizes in Kogi

NIWA Deploys Rescue Team, Sets Up Probe Panel After Boat Capsizes in Kogi

By prince Benson Davies

Tragedy struck in Kogi State as a boat capsized in the water of the Ebe community in Kupe South Local Government Area of the state in the early hours of Friday 29th November,2024 prompting the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) to swiftly deploy a rescue team to the scene. In addition to the rescue efforts, NIWA has also set up an investigative panel to determine the cause of the accident and prevent similar incidents in the future.

Preliminary findings by NIWA indicate that the wooden boat was travelling to the Katcha market in Niger State when it suddenly went under due to poor visibility and overloading. There are no details of lives lost so far.

The wooden craft, operated by an unknown boat operator, left an abandoned jetty at 1 a.m. Friday morning with an unsubstantiated number of passengers to circumvent NIWA’s tight surveillance on the waterways.

To unravel the cause of the accident, NIWA has set up an investigation panel to ascertain the real cause of the accident, the total number of passengers onboard, and the owner of the craft.

Meanwhile, the top management team of NIWA is leading and coordinating the rescue operations as well as making sure the survivors of the boat mishap receive urgent medical attention.

NIWA shall, in due course, release more information after the investigation has been concluded.

“We are shocked by this incident despite all our efforts to sensitize Nigerians about safety measures on waterways. Not quite long, we unveiled the National Waterways Transportation Code, visited communities and stakeholders to make them have a buy in to our strategy to curb accidents on water, and also discussed with State governors in Nigeria to partner with us in providing safe water crafts to help move people and goods safely across our waterways and now sadly , this happened. NIWA will investigate this accident and will prosecute the boat captain and owner for deliberate disobedience to the Extant law on waterways, NIWA, MD assured.