8 people drown as 2 boats collide in Bayelsa

Another boat mishap has killed no fewer than eight persons on Oyoma River, near Oporoma, the headquarters of Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. The mishap which occurred on Wednesday came barely five days after a boat accident killed about six persons, including a corps member, travelling from Otuan to Ayama in the […]

Another boat mishap has killed no fewer than eight persons on Oyoma River, near Oporoma, the headquarters of Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

The mishap which occurred on Wednesday came barely five days after a boat accident killed about six persons, including a corps member, travelling from Otuan to Ayama in the same Southern Ijaw LGA.

The tragedy was said to have happened when a 75 horse-power engine boat with 12 passengers on board rammed into a local boat conveying foodstuff due to poor visibility as a result of bad weather as it was raining heavily.

Daily Trust gathered that the boat was conveying passengers from Korokorosei to Ayama Ijaw and that the passengers were without life jackets.

The state’s Chairman of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), Ipigansi Ogoniba, who confirmed Wednesday’s accident, said the union had banned any boat from loading without passengers wearing life jackets, warning that hence any boat operator flouting the order would be handed over to the police.

He said, “Yes, we were at the scene of the accident. It occurred at Oyoma near Oporoma and eight people died. One of the boats, the local boat, stopped and the other one hit it.”

The police spokesman in the state, Asinim Butswat, also confirmed the incident, saying the DPO in charge of the area confirmed the tragedy.