At least 46 people have died after a boat carrying 77 passengers capsized in Goronyo Local Government Area of Sokoto State, with rescuers continuing efforts to locate 24 others still missing.
The Sokoto State Police Command said seven passengers were rescued alive following the accident, which occurred while the boat was travelling from Gorau to Birjingo.
Police spokesperson Ahmad Rufai confirmed that the figures currently account for all 77 passengers aboard the vessel, although the casualty figures could change as the search operation continues.
“There were 77 passengers moving from Gorau to Birjingo. Seven rescued alive and 46 recovered dead, while 24 declared missing. Search is still on,” Rufai said.
However, reports from the affected community suggested that the scale of the tragedy could be higher than the initial police figures. Reuters reported that its correspondent saw 50 bodies at a community mosque in Gorau, while other accounts put the death toll at 53. The Associated Press separately reported 47 deaths.
The varying figures could not immediately be reconciled, underscoring the difficulty of establishing the exact number of victims while rescue teams are still searching the waterways.
The cause of the accident also remained unknown as of Thursday.
Recurring Water-Transport Tragedies Raise Concern
The latest incident has renewed concerns about the safety of water transportation in Goronyo, where residents rely on boats to travel between communities, farms and markets.
It occurred almost exactly a year after another major boat accident in the same local government area.
On August 17, 2025, a canoe carrying more than 50 passengers capsized near Kojiyo village while heading towards Goronyo Market. The National Emergency Management Agency subsequently coordinated a search operation involving several government agencies and local divers.
The Sokoto State Government later reported that four people died, 41 were rescued and five remained missing.
Following that incident, the state government announced the procurement of 20 motorised boats and life jackets for riverine communities, with two of the boats allocated to Goronyo Local Government Area.
The recurrence of a deadly boat accident despite those interventions is likely to intensify calls for stricter enforcement of passenger limits, mandatory use of life jackets, improved boat inspections and stronger emergency-response systems along waterways.
For families in Gorau, Birjingo and surrounding communities, however, the immediate priority remains the search for the 24 passengers still missing as authorities work to establish the final toll of one of Sokoto’s latest waterway tragedies.
