A distressing incident unfolded in the Madobi Local Government Area of Kano State, resulting in the loss of at least four lives with six individuals reported missing due to a canoe mishap on Wednesday.
Saminu Abdullahi, the Spokesperson for Kano State Fire Services, confirmed the unfortunate event on Wednesday night.
During his statement, he revealed that out of the 14 individuals on board, which included two canoe paddlers, only five managed to be rescued, leaving the fate of the remaining six passengers unknown.
Abdullahi emphasized, “Efforts are ongoing to locate a missing child and the six other passengers who were aboard the ill-fated canoe.”
He also mentioned, “Following the incident, Aminu Garba, the Councillor representing Kauran Mata Ward in the local government area, promptly reached out to the State Fire Service seeking urgent assistance.”
Corroborating the incident, Jamilu Yakasai, the Information Officer of Madobi Local Government, shared that the bodies of four victims—Maryam Jibrin, Yusuf Galinja, Kabiru Muhammad, and Safiyanu Muss—were recovered and laid to rest in accordance with Islamic customs on the same day.
In a show of solidarity, the Interim chairman of the local government, Alhaji Muhammad Gora, visited the Kauran Mata community to offer condolences and pledged full support to the families affected by the tragedy.
A local resident named Salisu Baure pointed towards overloading as a potential cause of the accident, noting that besides the passengers, the canoe was also transporting two bags of rice and a motorcycle at the time of the incident.
Meanwhile, Ibrahim Lawan, the ward head of Kauran Mata, urged the Kano State government to introduce modern speedboats equipped with life jackets to avert similar calamities in the future.