Cleric, wife die in Bayelsa boat mishap

A pastor and his wife have reportedly lost their lives after a boat conveying church members to a programme capsized along the Odioma-Brass River in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. The incident which occurred on Friday afternoon was reportedly caused by heavy rainfall and poor weather conditions. Daily Trust gathered that the ill-fated […]

A pastor and his wife have reportedly lost their lives after a boat conveying church members to a programme capsized along the Odioma-Brass River in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

The incident which occurred on Friday afternoon was reportedly caused by heavy rainfall and poor weather conditions.

Daily Trust gathered that the ill-fated boat was transporting church members to Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, for a church programme when it capsized.

Although many of the passengers were rescued, the pastor and his wife were said to have been among those affected.

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The body of the pastor’s wife was later recovered and deposited at a mortuary, while rescue efforts are ongoing to locate the pastor and any other passengers who may still be missing.

Confirming the incident, the Bayelsa State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Musa Mohammed, said the number of casualties had yet to be ascertained, as rescue operations were still underway.

He added that the Marine Unit of the Nigeria Police Force had joined the rescue mission to assist in locating and rescuing any passengers trapped in the river.

Also speaking on the incident, the Youth President of Odioma Community, Moses Inene, confirmed that the pastor and his wife were involved in the accident.

According to him, local divers have been mobilised for search and rescue operations.

He said while the corpse of the pastor’s wife had been recovered, efforts were still ongoing to locate the pastor.

Inene expressed hope that the rescue efforts would yield positive results and that those still missing would be found.