Police confirm 10 dead in Sokoto boat mishap

The police have said 10 people, mostly children, drowned in a boat accident on Thursday in Sabon Birni Local Government Area of the State.

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Speaking to PREMIUM TIMES by phone, the state police command’s spokesperson, Ahmad Rufa’i, said the accident occurred in Zalla Bango, a remote village, when an overloaded wooden canoe capsized.

“All the corpses were recovered the following day, 10 in total, and most of them were children,” the spokesperson said.

The police, however, did not know whether the victims were fleeing bandit attacks at the time of the mishap.

Vanguard newspaper had reported that the victims were villagers escaping from a fresh wave of bandit violence, while the Daily Trust reported that many of the victims were women fleeing a looming attack and that the mishap happened when the boat struck the edge of a collapsed culvert along the Goronyo–Sabon Birni road.

The Sokoto Police Command’s confirmation puts the death toll at 10, all recovered from the river, though questions remain about the exact circumstances of the tragedy.

The command’s spokesperson noted that this year alone, Sokoto has recorded multiple such incidents.

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“Sincerely speaking, it is only in this year, 2025, that we have had this kind of recurrence. This is about the fourth time now. But you know, most of the localities where this is happening, their proximity to the metro and even the local government headquarters is very far, making it difficult for them to have access to help easily,” he explained.

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Boat accidents have become a recurring tragedy in Sokoto’s rural and riverine communities. Civil society and humanitarian workers blame unsafe transport conditions—such as overloading, reliance on wooden canoes, absence of life jackets, and lack of emergency response infrastructure—for the repeated loss of lives.

Between 2020 and August 2025, at least eight separate boat accidents have been recorded in Sokoto State, killing between 74 and 78 people over those five years, according to Daily Trust and Vanguard. Just last month, a boat capsized near Goronyo Dam, leaving four people dead and 41 rescued, according to reports confirmed by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

Sabon Birni has also remained under constant bandit attacks, forcing residents into desperate choices. Local leaders and civil society groups continue to urge authorities to improve water transport safety while addressing the insecurity that drives villagers into perilous crossings.