Sanwo-Olu Orders Probe of Lagos Boat Mishap

Segun James

As the death toll in the boat mishap in Lagos climbed to 15, the state Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has ordered a probe into the July 8 Mile 2-Ibeshe incident.

The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso who disclosed this in a statement yesterday, said the governor was, “deeply saddened by the incident and commiserates with the families who lost their loved ones.”

 Omotoso stated that the police were already probing what went wrong and treating the sad incident as a criminal offense, saying that the boat which was said to be unlicenced, obviously broke the waterways rules of “no night travel,” and no overloading.

“Besides, not all of the passengers wore life jackets and the boat did not take off from a government-approved jetty. The Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), and others are assisting the investigators,”

He stressed that, “anybody who is found to have contributed in any way to this tragedy will surely face the law to ensure that we do not have any such incidents in future.

“The waterways’ rules and regulations are clear; they must be respected in accordance with the greatest value that the Sanwo-Olu administration places on human life.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families. May The Almighty strengthen them in this difficult time.” Omotoso concluded.

THISDAY reported that 15 bodies have been recovered from the 16-passenger boat that capsized on July 8, in the Ojo area of Lagos State.

General Manager, Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), Oluwadamilola Emmanuel, had confirmed the figure.

Emmanuel had said the Search and Rescue teams of LASWA, the National Inland Waterways, Nigerian Marine Police and the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, were still searching for the only remaining body.

The 16-passenger boat took off from Mile 2 and was heading to Ibeshe in Ojo Area when tragedy struck. LASWA had earlier reported that the boat took off at 7.45 pm on Friday carrying a full capacity of 16 passengers.