Five killed in northern Nigeria boat mishap

Local news outlets in Nigeria report that five people were killed after the boat they were riding in suffered a mishap in the country’s northern state of Kano on Saturday, April 22.

The unnamed boat was underway in the Kanwa Dam in the local government area of Madobi when the incident occurred at around 17:40 local time on Saturday.

A spokesperson of the state’s firefighting service confirmed that six of the boat’s occupants were safely rescued while the remaining five were found unconscious. Tragically, these five individuals were later pronounced deceased.

The spokesperson said the victims were from the local government area of Fagge in Kano state.

An investigation has been launched to identify the events that led to the incident, which is also the second deadly passenger vessel mishap to occur in northern Nigeria since the beginning of the year.

On January 4, a boat carrying over 100 people broke apart and sank in the Niger River in Kebbi state. Fourteen passengers were found dead while another six have been reported as missing.

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