• We’ll Clamp Down On Substandard Vessels, Says LASG
TRAGEDY struck in the Badore area of Lagos State yesterday when a boat conveying 17 passengers capsized, killing seven persons.

The Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), meanwhile, has summoned an emergency meeting with all commercial boat operators in the state for Tuesday, February 2, just as it vowed to clamp down on boat operators who contravene the rules and regulations guiding their operations.

The ill-fated boat took off from Ijede shortly after the monthly sanitation exercise and capsized around 10.20am.

Six passengers were pulled to safety following search and rescue efforts and taken to the General Hospital in Ijede for treatment.

Among the four persons initially confirmed dead are one female and three male. The Lagos State Fire Service later added that three more victims who were rushed to the hospital had died.

Confirming the incident, the Publicity Secretary of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Southwest zone, Ibrahim Farinloye, said: “The mishap was caused by the activities of sand dredgers. They filled a section of the water with sand without the knowledge of the boat operators. The affected boat ran into the accumulated sand, tumbled and fell off.”

This incident is coming nine days after a fatal boat collision at Ibeshe in the Ikorodu area of the state, which claimed the life of one passenger, while several others sustained injuries.