The Lagos State Government
has confirmed the rescue of 19 persons in the boat mishap which occurred in
Oworonshoki end of Third Mainland Bridge area of the State on Tuesday.
Managing Director of the
Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), Mr. Oluwadamilola Emmanuel, who
confirmed the mishap in a statement, said the 19 persons were rescued alive by
the agency, while one of the passengers on board the boat was unfortunately
lost.
The passenger boat
identified as SEALINK was said to be travelling from Ikorodu to CMS when the
incident occurred at about 9:30am in Oworonshoki after hitting a submerged
object.
While confirming the
incident, Emmanuel said the 19 persons rescued have already been taken to Ebute
Ero Jetty from where they were transferred to the hospital, while further
investigations on the cause of the accident were still ongoing.
He said: “A passenger boat
named SEALINK with 20 passengers and two crew onboard coming from Ikorodu to
CMS ran over a submerged wooden boat close to Third Mainland Bridge. 19
passengers were carried to safety to Ebute Ero Jetty.
“The LASWA emergency
response team recovered a female body (identified as a police officer attached
to Zone Two police station) and handed over the corpse to the Marine Police.
Her husband is an official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).
“The submerged SEALINK Boat
has been salvaged and towed to a secure location off the waterways. Salvaging
Operations is also taking place to get the submerged wooden boat off the
navigable channel,” the LASWA boss said.
Emmanuel added that the
crew members of the said SEALINK Boat have already been taken to police custody
as investigation is still ongoing.
While commiserating with
the family of the deceased, Emmanuel assured that the State Government would
not relent in coming up with policies and programmes aimed at ensuring safety
on the waterways.
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