KEBBI, Nigeria, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- Some 53 people were believed to have perished on Thursday in a boat mishap on River Niger in Bagudo area of northern Nigeria's Kebbi, a local official said.
The accident occurred when a local transport boat, believed to have been over-loaded with over 100 people, capsized mid-water, throwing all passengers overboard, most of whom were believed to have died, while rescue efforts were ongoing.
Confirming the incident, Muhammad Zagga, Chairman of the Bagudo Local Government Council in Kebbi, said 53 traders were feared dead in the boat mishap.
Zagga told reporters that the traders, majority of from Gaya Village in Niger Republic, were going to a market when the incident happened.
"They were going to a market in Lolo area when their boat capsized," he told reporters.
Zagga said out of the over 100 passengers on board the boat, 47 were rescued while others could not be accounted for.
The chairman said the authorities in Niger Republic had deplored 500 divers to search for the missing.
