By Frontline Reporters

 At least 47 people have died after a boat carrying farm workers capsized on a river in Gorau, Goronyo Local Government Area of Sokoto State, officials and residents have said.

The tragedy occurred on Thursday when the boat, laden with residents travelling to their farms, overturned on the waterway. The victims were reportedly heading to their farms for agricultural activities, a common practice among communities in the area during the rainy season.

Abdulkadir Yusuf, Sokoto State manager of the National Inland Waterways Authority, confirmed that the death toll had risen to 47.

He said the figure was still provisional, suggesting that the number of casualties could increase as search and recovery operations continued.

Residents said the accident had plunged the community into mourning, with women and children reportedly making up a large proportion of those who died.

Samaila Garba, a 55-year-old resident, said his 13-year-old granddaughter, Jamila Usman, was among the victims.

Garba said he personally counted at least 42 bodies recovered from the river, most of them women and children.

“You know, during the rainy season, most women and children go to the farm to work,” he told the Associated Press.

Another resident, Aminu Dan Hajiya, said the accident could have claimed even more lives because many residents routinely use the same waterway to access their farms.

“I go to my farm using the same waterway, and I consider myself lucky not to have been on the boat,” he said.

According to him, the scale of the tragedy was such that virtually every household in the community had been affected.

“In fact, almost every household in the community has been affected,” Dan Hajiya said.

The accident has once again raised concerns about the safety of inland water transportation in Nigeria, particularly in rural communities where residents rely heavily on boats to cross rivers and reach their farms, markets and neighbouring settlements.

During the rainy season, rising water levels and stronger currents can make inland waterways more dangerous, while overcrowding, inadequate safety equipment and the absence of life jackets have frequently been identified as factors that increase the risk of fatal boat accidents.

The latest incident is expected to intensify calls for stricter enforcement of safety regulations on Nigeria’s inland waterways, including proper registration of boats, enforcement of passenger limits, provision of life jackets and regular inspection of vessels operating in rural communities.

As rescue and recovery efforts continue, families and residents of Gorau are left to mourn what has become one of the deadliest boat accidents reported in the area, with fears that more victims could still be recovered from the river.

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