’20’ killed as cargo boat explodes in Bayelsa

A wooden cargo boat carrying over 64 passengers and crew on Wednesday exploded and caught fire on Bayelsa waterways, killing about 20 people.

NAN reports that the incident occurred along the Ezetu 1 community in the southern Ijaw LGA of Bayelsa.

Musa Mohammed, the police spokesperson in Bayelsa police, confirmed the death of the 20 people in the incident, adding that rescue efforts by the marine police unit were still ongoing.

The ill-fated cargo boat laden with farm produce from the rural settlement was sailing to Swali market in Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa.

Ogoniba Ipigansi, chairman of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Bayelsa chapter, also confirmed the incident in a telephone call on Thursday.

He said a rescue team of the union, comprising two speed boats, had been dispatched to the scene to assist the passengers on board.

He said the exact number of casualties was yet to be ascertained, noting that rescue was still underway and several people on board were yet to be accounted for.

Wooden cargo boats were exempted from the state government’s ban on night navigation on waterways.

Due to the slow pace of navigation, the cargo boats set sail a day ahead of the targeted weekly market days on Thursdays when farm produce flood the Swali waterside in Yenagoa.

Meanwhile, Target Segibo, chairman of southern Ijaw LGA, bemoaned the loss of 20 persons in the incident, and described the disaster as regrettable.

He called for concerted efforts by stakeholders to strengthen safety regulations in the marine transport sector.