
Thirteen people have tragically lost their lives and many others were still missing, after a boat carrying around 100 passengers overturned in Niger State, located in north-central Nigeria.
As per Reuters, the wooden boat were on its way to a market when the incident occurred and so far 26 people, mostly women and children had been rescued.
Local official Isiyaku Akilu said that the boat driver, who survived the accident, did not know exactly how many people were on board.
"The exact cause of the accident is yet to be determined, but from all indications, it appears to be due to overloading," added Akilu.
Meanwhile, Adamu Ahmad, a member of the boat drivers' union said the boat was carrying more people than it should have which confirms it was overloaded.
He further mentioned that the efforts are still ongoing to find and recover the bodies of those who are missing.
This incident occurred just nine months after another deadly incident when a boat carrying mostly women and children who were returning from a religious festival overturned, resulting in the deaths of at least 60 people.