Posted by By TUNDE RAHEEM , Akure on
Tragedy struck on Tuesday, in Igbokoda - Aiyetoro, riverine area of Ondo State, as 45 people died in a boat mishap.
Tragedy struck on Tuesday, in Igbokoda - Aiyetoro, riverine area of Ondo State, as 45 people died in a boat mishap.
The incident, which occurred in the morning near the dreaded Ayelala shrine junction, on the Ayetoro waterways in the Ilaje Local Government Area, also left four people injured.
Already, 40 bodies of victims, including a pregnant woman, a family of four, comprising a mother and her three children and three other ladies had been recovered as at Wednesday morning.
The accident, it was gathered, occurred when the wooden boat, with about 200 passengers on board ran into a sharp object, which pierced through and broke it into pieces. This made the boat to sink.
Passengers of the ill-fated boat, it was gathered, were mostly market women returning to their various riverine communities after a business trip to Igbokoda as well as students returning home to their parents for the long vacation.
The chairman of Ilaje Local Government, Chief Adebambo Odoro, who was part of the rescue team at the scene, said about 100 passengers were able to swim to safety.
He disclosed that men of the Marine Police at Igbokoda are making efforts to recover remaining bodies of the victims.
While describing the accident as unfortunate, the council chairman said Ayelala junction, on the waterway, has become notorious in recent times. He recalled that it was at the same spot that four officials of the National Orientation Agency (NOA) lost their lives few years ago, apart from other minor mishaps.
Odoro appealed to boat operators to always drive carefully and make sure that visibility is clear before embarking on any journey.
Meanwhile, bodies of the victims have been deposited at a public mortuary in Igbokoda, the local government headquarters.