About 40 persons were reported to have lost their lives on Saturday in a boat mishap in Gummi, the headquarters of Gummi Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
The Director of Emergency, Zamfara State Emergency Management Agency, Hassan Dauran, confirmed this to Channels Television.
Dauran said the boat was carrying about 50 passengers when the tragic accident occurred.
He said only a few of them were rescued alive at that moment, while the majority of the passengers, mostly women and children, could not make it.
A witness told Channels Television that the deceased persons were going to their farms in the early hours of Saturday when the boat capsized and sank into the river.
The witness said there were 53 farmers, including children, in the boat, and only 12 were rescued alive, the captain of the boat inclusive, while the remaining 41 were dead.
The Emir of Gummi, Justice Hassan Lawal (retired), has commiserated with the families of those who lost their lives in the incident.
Lawal described the incident as very tragic and prayed Allah to forgive all those who have lost their lives and give their families the fortitude to bear the loss.
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