Philip Jeremiah Eke
Three children have lost their lives after a boat conveying passengers from Azuzuama in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State capsized at Ikebiri-1 community in the same local government area.
Daily Trust gathered that the incident occurred in the early hours of Wednesday, around 1am, when a commercial wooden boat was transporting passengers to Yenagoa, the state capital.
A local diver in Ikebiri community told Daily Trust that the bodies of the deceased children — two males and one female, aged between six and 15 — have been recovered by local divers and transported back to Azuzuama community, where the journey began.
The former Chairman of the Maritime Union Workers in Bayelsa State, Ipigansi Ogoniba, who confirmed the incident, said they have already dispatched divers from Yenagoa to the scene and are awaiting a report.
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He said the union is yet to receive details about the casualties and the total number of passengers on board, as the boat did not depart from Yenagoa.
It was gathered that the accident is suspected to have been caused by overloading and a failed pumping machine that was meant to evacuate water from the boat.
When contacted, the police spokesman in Bayelsa State, DSP Musa Muhammad, said he was not aware of the incident.
He promised to make findings and revert, but did not respond to subsequent calls.
