More than a hundred people are missing in Nigeria after a ship sank.
This one “carried around 160 passengers.
It split and sank with all the passengers on board, ”said the administrative manager of Ngaski Department, Kebbi State, Abdullahi Buhari Wara.
"The rescue operation is still ongoing but only 22 survivors and one body have been recovered so far," he continued.
The incident took place in northwestern Nigeria, on the Niger River, local authorities said.
The boat had left the locality of Lokon Minaa, in the state of Niger (Central) and was heading for the town of Wara, in the state of Kebbi, when its hull broke and it was wrecked.
An overloaded boat
"We are talking about 140 passengers still missing," said Abdullahi Buhari Wara, stressing that the boat should not have carried more than 80 people.
The ship was also carrying a cargo of sandbags extracted from a nearby artisanal gold mine, he detailed.
Earlier this month, thirty people drowned in the sinking of an overloaded boat in Niger state.
During the rainy season, capsized boats are common on Nigeria's rivers and streams, where ships are often overloaded and poorly maintained.
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