Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal of has paid a condolence visit to the families and people of Gummi Local Government of the state over the loss of 19 wedding passengers who died in a river last Saturday, while conveying a bride to her husband’s house.

The governor, speaking through the state Commissioner of Information, Alhaji Mahmud Mohammed Dantawasa, stated that the incident was an act of God.

He noted that the Zamfara State Government received, with shock, the death notice of several people who drowned in the river during a wedding ceremony.

He consoled the people of Gummi Local Government, Gummi Emirate Council, Bardoki Ward, and the families of all the victims over their loss.

Recall that no fewer than 19 passengers lost their lives in a river near Gwalli village in the Gummi Local Government area of Zamfara State.

An eyewitness, Alhaji Usman Ibrahim, told The Guardian that the deceased were accompanying a bride to her husband’s house last Saturday, when a commercial bus they were in ran into the river as the driver was trying to cross a nearly collapsed bridge.

He further stated that the driver was not familiar with the road, and as such, he tried to navigate the damaged bridge, which had been patched with sandbags and stones by villagers.

“As the driver was moving carefully on the collapsed bridge, the bus went off the road and ran into the deep ditch as a result of which, the passengers were drowned in the river,” he said.

He explained that the bride and a few people who were able to step out of the bus, while 19 dead bodies were recovered.