Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State on Thursday said the recurring cases of boat mishaps over the past few years are worrisome and promised to ensure strict compliance to safety measures to tame the trend.

Bago said this in a condolence message issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Bologi Ibrahim, over the boat mishap that occurred on river Niger upstream Jebba dam, at Gbajibo Community of Mokwa Local Council which claimed the lives of many people including women and children on 1st October 2024.

The governor, who sympathised and commiserated with the families of the victims as well as Mokwa local council, described the incident as unfortunate and disheartening.

He prayed that Allah would repose the souls of the departed, comfort the bereaved, and grant quick recovery to those injured.

In a related development, the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) disclosed that it recovered an additional eight corpses on October 3, 2024, bringing the total number of recovered dead bodies to 24.