"Four Feared Dead, Several Rescued in Yauri Canoe Accident - Red Cross"

By Umar Faruk, Birnin Kebbi

Birnin Kebbi, June 18, 2025 – A tragic canoe accident occurred on the Yauri town market river bank on Tuesday, resulting in four people feared dead and several others rescued from the water, according to reports from the Red Cross Society of Nigeria. The incident happened at approximately 11:14 am on the same day.

According to Nafiu Nuhu, Disaster Management team lead at the Yauri division of the Red Cross Society of Nigeria, the accident occurred when the canoe submerged, leading to a drowning incident. "Some of the victims were rescued from the submerging/drowning accident with the assistance of our great members from the Red Cross Society of Nigeria and National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) and community people," Nuhu said.

Nuhu added that four people are feared dead, although their bodies have not been recovered yet. "But sadly, we expect four people to be dead from the drowning/submerging accident, but it's not confirmed. For now, none of the submerged bodies has been found from the water drowning/submerging accident due to circumstances, but we hope all the submerged bodies will be found after 24 hours from now," he said.

The Red Cross Society of Nigeria, in collaboration with NIWA and community members, responded quickly to the incident, providing emergency assistance to those affected. Earlier today, Wednesday, three bodies were recovered from the water and taken to the village of Hikiya, Rofiya LGA in Niger state  across the Yauri river bank for burial. 

The rescue efforts were overseen by the Red Cross Society of Nigeria's executive members, including Alhaji Isah Bako Tondi (Chairman), Aliyu Adamu (Division Secretary), Nafiu Nuhu (Disaster Management team lead), and Lauratu Mohammed NAYELWA (Vice Chairman, Nigeria Red Cross, Yauri division). The community has been working together with the Red Cross and NIWA to respond to the incident and locate the missing bodies.

The incident highlights the importance of safety measures on Nigeria's waterways and the need for continued collaboration between emergency responders and community members to respond to such incidents effectively.