Two children have died and two other persons were injured in Katcha Local Government Area of Niger State when a boat caught fire.

The boat was said to have caught fire following a mechanical fault in the engine, which ignited a jerry can of petrol inside the boat.

The overseeing Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Salihu Garba, in a message sent to Sunday PUNCH on Saturday, said the incident happened at 6 pm on Friday and that the boat had 145 passengers on board.

He added, “NSEMA has received a report of another boat mishap that claimed two lives of children and injured two persons in Katcha LGA. The incident occurred yesterday 20/10/2023 at about 6 pm when the boat engine caught fire due to mechanical failure and ignited a jerry can of petrol stored inside the boat that had 145 people on board.

“The occupants are from Danbo community in Kogi State, they were on their way back from Katcha Market. So far, one corpse has been recovered while the search is still ongoing for the second.”

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