18 die, 6 missing as canoe capsizes in Katsina

• 1 crushed by vehicle

At least 18 bodies were recovered and six still missing in Mai’adua Local Government Area of Katsina State when a canoe capsized on Wednesday.

A resident of the area, Lawal Sakatare, who confirmed the incident, said 24 passengers, mostly children, on Sallah celebration were on board the ill-fated canoe.

“Fourteen of them were from Tsabu village, while four were from Dogon Hawa village. 15 out of the 18 were buried in Mai’adua today (Thursday) while the remaining six persons on board are still missing,” he said.

He added that a team from the affected villages was still on a search and rescue mission trying to locate the remaining six.

The police spokesman in Katsina, SP Gambo Isah, did not pick calls or respond to a message sent to him to confirm the accident as at the time of filing this report.

In a related development, one person was crushed and three others injured by a customs patrol vehicle chasing suspected smugglers in the Jibia Local Government Area of Katsina State.

The Controller of Katsina Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service, Dalha Wada Chedi, who confirmed the incident, said investigation was ongoing on the matter.