Exactly one week after the boat mishap at the Badore area of Lagos claimed seven lives, another boat mishap at the Badagry area of the state yesterday claimed two.

Although eight out of the 10 passengers onboard the boat had been rescued as at press time, it was gathered that two persons were yet to be rescued. The two missing persons were identified as the driver of the canoe and a female passenger, who had boarded the boat at the Idagba area.

It was gathered that the boat, which was conveying 10 passengers from Idagba to Iworo, capsized after it ran into a log of wood. Thus, when the fibre passenger boat ran into the log, it upturned and the passengers fell overboard into the lagoon.

Confirming the incident, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), NEMA South-west Spokesperson, Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye, said emergency responders were immediately deployed to the scene.

He said: “Unlike the previous incident which was caused by sand dredgers, this incident was happened because the boat hit a log and capsized, upturning its passengers into the water.

“The boat is called a fibre boat because it has engine. It happened in Badagry. It so happened that the open canoe hit a log while sailing, lost balance, and capsized with 10 passengers.

“Emergency responders like the Marine police, LASWA, NIWA and local divers have rescued eight people alive while the search for a woman and the driver of the canoe continues. The correct figure of those rescued alive is eight. Also, out of the eight, only four wore life jackets while others did not.

“The issues are being handled in the marine police office, Badagry. The canoe took off from Idagba with 10 passengers and dropped them at Iworo and picked eight passengers at Iworo to go back before it had the problem.”

It would be recalled that the Badore incident, which was the first boat incident for the year, initially recorded 13 survivors and four dead, but the death toll later rose to seven dead.

While three were brought out dead, one of the victims, who was part of the 14 persons rescued from the water, later died in the hospital. The passenger boat was coming from Ijede with 17 passengers onboard before it hit a sand dune at Badore and capsized.

•Sourced from THISDAY. Photo shows NEMA South-west Spokesperson, Ibrahim Farinloye, during a rescue operation.

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