No fewer than 11 people, including a pregnant woman and six children, are feared dead after a boat conveying mourners from a burial ceremony capsized on the River Benue in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State.
The incident reportedly occurred on Saturday night as the victims were returning to Daududawadawa community, an island settlement behind the Nigerian Army School of Military Engineering Barracks in the North Bank area of Makurdi.
A local source, identified simply as Daniel, said the boat, which was carrying more than 40 passengers, overturned midway through the journey between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. during a heavy downpour accompanied by strong winds.
Confirming the incident, the Commander of Operation Shara (Sweep), a local vigilante group in North Bank, Nura Umar, said the victims had attended the burial of a woman from their community in Wadata.
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