At least 60 people have died and dozens more have been rescued after a boat carrying more than 100 passengers capsized in Nigeria’s north-central Niger State, according to local officials.

The vessel departed from the town of Tungan Sule in Malale district at about 11am local time (10:00 GMT) on Tuesday morning, and was heading towards the town of Dugga on Nigeria’s Kainji reservoir.

The Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) said on Wednesday that the incident occurred when a vessel struck a submerged tree stump near the Gausawa community in Borgu Local Government Area.

“The cause was attributed to overloading and collision with a tree stump,” the agency told local newspaper, Daily Trust.

NSEMA said women and children were on board the vessel, which it said was heading to Dug

See Full Page