The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has confirmed that 30 people lost their lives in the recent boat accident that occurred in Gausawa community, Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State.
According to NEMA, 58 people were rescued, while one additional body was recovered on Thursday, bringing the confirmed death toll to 30.
The tragedy, which happened on September 2, 2025, involved a vessel carrying about 90 passengers along a local waterway.
NEMA Head of Press Unit, Manzo Ezekiel, in a statement said several passengers remain missing as search and rescue operations continues.
The operation is being coordinated with the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, National Inland Waterways Authority, Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission, Nigerian Red Cross Society, local divers, and community volunteers.
The agency attributed the accident to overloading and worsened by a collision with a tree stump in the water channel.
NEMA’s Director General, Mrs. Zubaida Umar, has directed the agency’s Minna Operations Office to intensify rescue efforts.
NEMA said it is working closely with all relevant stakeholders to sustain the rescue efforts and prevent further loss of lives.
Boat accidents are a recurring tragedy in Nigeria, particularly in riverine communities where water transport is common.
Experts have repeatedly linked these incidents to overloading, poor enforcement of safety standards, use of unsafe vessels, and inadequate life-saving equipment.
Veteran journalist and recipient of A.B.C Yola, Reporter of the Year Award (1997), Hassan Umar Shallpella, works with WAP as a Regional Correspondence. He was trained at Institute of Mass Communication and Technology Jos and Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Training School Lagos.He was a News desk Editor and a Correspondent at the Punch newspaper and till 2019, was the Deputy Editor ofThe Scope newspaper.
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