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| Search and Rescue Officials Removing corpses of some of the victims of Tuesday night boat accident in Lagos. |
2 Children, 11 Adults Die In Festac Town Boat Mishap
The South-West Coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Ibrahim Farinloye, Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, has confirmed that 13 dead bodies (including two children) had been recovered from the boat that capsized at 4th Ave, opposite 41 Road Junction in FESTAC Town, Lagos Tuesday night.
He however added that the mission to recover the remaining bodies of victims of the boat accident has been suspended.
Contrary to an initial statement by Lagos State Emergency Agency (LASEMA) that 12 persons had died, Farinloye said the figure was 13 as one of the initial seven who were rescued alive died on the way to the hospital. He maintained that 11 bodies were recovered on Tuesday while one body was recovered on Wednesday morning.
According to him, 13 bodies have been recovered while 6 persons survived.He said the accident occurred while the boat was trying to cross the passengers from one side of the road to the other over a distance of about 10 metres.
“Immediately, we alerted all the stakeholders - The Navy Special Boat Service, The Nigeria Police Marine, The Nigeria Police Disaster Unit, LASEMA, National Inland Waterways Authority to go for the search,” he said.
Farinloye also mentioned that over 30 local divers were employed to conduct the underwater search, but it was suspended till Wednesday evening.
He assured that all agencies were on the same page and that there were no conflicting figures concerning the number of casualties. “Nobody was there when the boat loaded but one of the rescued victims told us there were 24 people on board… some people said 21 but what we are working with is 24.”
He added that “we are having 4 or 5 people missing.”
Farinloye said the boat had over 15 passengers and confirmed that among the dead were two children, while five persons were still missing.
He added that a distress call came to the agency at 11.10 p.m. on Tuesday and said that rescue operation led to the recovery of the bodies.
Farinloye said that NEMA in collaboration with other emergency service agencies was continuing with the rescue operation.
Also Dr Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), confirmed that 13 dead bodies had been recovered from the mishap.
Oke-Osanyintolu said yesterday that the surviving victims had been taken to hospital for treatment.
He also confirmed the casualty figure. ``Thirteen persons have been confirmed dead and their bodies recovered, while six of the victims have been taken to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) for treatment,’’he said
But, President, Festival Town Residents Association (FTRA), Mr Jola Ogunlusi, explained that the rescue efforts had to be suspended at 02:00 hrs on Wednesday morning, after the recovery of 11 bodies from the canal.
``Local divers had to be mobilised to lead the rescue effort. Of the 24 passengers who were said to be on board the boat, only six were able to help themselves. We could only recover 11 bodies and the search for the other seven bodies will continue today,'' he said.
Ogunlusi added that the rescue efforts were organised by the Lagos State Emergency Rescue Agency, which also moved the recovered bodies to a public mortuary.
The FTRA president recalled that in 2001, the Lagos State Government had mobilised to the site to start work on the development of a bridge across the canal at 4th Avenue and 13th Road on 6th Avenue, ``but the project was politicised and they had to abandon the site''.
He also said that in 2004, the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) put the cost of the bridge at N240 million.
Ogunlusi, who said he was in the company of the Chairman, Amuwo Odofin Local Government Council, Mr Ayodele Adewale, at the scene of the incident until the early hours of Wednesday, added that the boat was reportedly overloaded because the passengers were all rather anxious to cross the canal.
``The makeshift bridge has been built more than four times in the past, but once there is a heavy rainfall, it is usually washed away.
``People do not listen to instructions warning them to desist from using the boats or the makeshift bridge to cross the canal again.
"Both the Amuwo Odofin Local Government Council and the FTRA have consistently warned them on that. About three years ago, three persons lost their lives in a similar incident on the canal,'' he said.
Ogunlusi recalled that community leaders of 6th Avenue have organised a ``Keke Marwa'' route to take people from 6th Avenue to wherever they wanted to go to in FESTAC Town, but some remained stuck to the boats on the canal.
Ogunlusi added that the FTRA would now write to the Hon. Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, and the FHA, to take urgent steps to build a bridge to link 42 Road in 4th Avenue and 13th Road of 6th Avenue.
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