12 people have died and several are missing after two shipwrecks in Nigeria.
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afp.com
At least 12 people were killed in Nigeria on Monday in two separate shipwrecks, one in Lagos and the other in the northwest of the country.
Two people died and one is missing after a passenger vessel capsized in the Lagos lagoon.
The boat was on its way to the Ikorodu region for a funeral, when it sank due to strong currents.
“None of the seven passengers was wearing a life jacket.
Four passengers were rescued unharmed, two died and one is missing, ”Lagos State Waterways Authority said in a statement.
The craft would be a converted fishing vessel to accommodate passengers and take them to the funeral site.
Frequent shipwrecks
On Monday, another shipwreck claimed the lives of ten people, including children, on their way to a wedding, in the Nigerian state of Kebbi (north-west).
“The boat capsized due to strong waves on the river, whose waters are swollen by heavy rains.
All ten passengers on the boat drowned.
Four bodies have been found and the search for the other six is continuing, ”said Sani Dododo, head of the Kebbi State Emergency Management Agency.
Accidents and shipwrecks are frequent in Lagos, crossed by a network of lagoons and navigable waterways.
On August 1, 10 of the 19 passengers on a transport boat were killed there in similar circumstances.
Overloading and poor maintenance of boats, non-compliance with safety regulations and bad weather are among the main causes of shipwrecks in Nigeria.
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