10 Pupils, 2 Women Die In Boat Mishap.

The rainstorm that wreaked havoc in Lagos
on Monday also left sorrow in its wake in
Otto Awori Local Council Development Area,
Ojo, Lagos State, southwest Nigeria where
10 pupils and two women drowned after a
boat mishap during the rainstorm.
At least 22 primary
school pupils and women left a riverine
community, Ojota and were heading to
Agbede Village, another riverine community
early in the morning for school when the
rainstorm caused their boat to capsize.
Ten children were said to have survived
while 12 others, including two women
drowned. One of the deceased women is
said to be the wife of the Baale of Ojota
riverine village.
As at the time of filing this report, only the
bodies of four children, out of the 12 people
that died, had been recovered from the
river.
NextVoice gathered that the boat used in the
transportation did not make use of an
engine but was being paddled manually,
and it was overcrowded.
The boat was almost getting to Agbede
Village when it was caught in the rainstorm
which overturned it. 10 people were
rescued by locals.
The occupants of the boat did not make use
of life jackets which could have mitigated
the impact of the mishap.
After the tragedy, Governor Babatunde
Fashola ordered the Commissioner for Rural
Development, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi to
immediately visit the area to sympathise
with the people.
Ojelabi and a team from the Rural Ministry
visited Ojota and Agbede riverine
communities yesterday to assess the extent
of damage by the storm and report back to
the government.
It was weeping and wailing when the
government team visited Ojota village to
commiserate with the families of the victims.
A woman whose grand child died in the
boat mishap wept uncontrollably while
many could not hold back their tears.
Commiserating with the villagers over the
loss, Ojelabi said the governor was
concerned about the plight of the people
and had sent him to assess the level of
damage.
He lamented that the occupants of the boat
did not make use of life jackets, saying that
there is a law that anyone using the water
should wear a life jacket.
Ojelabi was of the view that if the occupants
of the capsised boat had worn life jacket,
the casualties would have reduced.
He said he came to assess the impact of the
damage and see how government could
prevent future tragedy.
Ojelabi lamented that there were too many
people in the boat paddled manually and
that could not cope with such weight.
He called on the community to monitor the
activities of those in the boat business and
ensure that they did not overload their
boats in the bid to make more money.
Shaaaiii!!....little kids.