About two children have been confirmed dead while two others have sustained varying degrees of injuries in a boat mishap that occurred in Katcha Local Government Area of Niger State.
The Overseeing Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency–NSEMA, Alhaji Salihu Garba, had revealed this information to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna on Saturday, October 21.
According to Garba, the incident occurred on Friday at about 18:00 GMT+1 when the boat engine caught fire owing to a mechanical failure and the inflamed a gallon of petrol that had earlier been stored inside the vessel.
About 145 passengers had been in that unfortunate boat, according to Garba and they were all from Danbo community in Kogi State.
Reports had said that the passengers were on their way back from Katcha market when the accident occurred.
As at the time of filing this report, the body of one of the deceased children have been recovered and the search for the remains of the second missing child is still ongoing.
