Death toll from Nigeria boat accident rises to at least 52

Residents say rescue operations are continuing before authorities will confirm final death toll.

By AFP, AP and Reuters

The death toll from a boat accident in northwest Nigeria has risen to 52, according to officials.

Authorities in Sokoto State reported on Friday morning that the number of people killed when the overloaded vessel capsized had risen to 52. Most of the victims are reported to have been children.

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“We are about to meet with officials of the local government to know the families of the victims,” Tukur Abubakar, head of operations at the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in Sokoto State, said.

Abdulkadir Yusuf, an area manager at the National Inland Waterways Authority, said ⁠on Thursday that the bodies of at least 40 children had been found.

Nasiru Adamu, a politician at the Sokoto State legislature, said that those on board were mostly aged ⁠between 10 and 15 years old.

Abdullahi Ghani, spokesperson for the Sokoto State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), told the Anadolu news agency that authorities were still at the scene assessing the situation and working to determine the exact number of people involved in the accident.

Mourners gather near the graves of victims who died in a boat accident, most of them children, in Gorau, Sokoto State, Nigeria, August 20, 2026 [Abubakar Imam/Reuters] — Mourners gather near the graves of victims, mostly children, who died in a boat accident, in Gorau, Sokoto State, Nigeria, on August 20, 2026 [Abubakar Imam/Reuters]

A former councillor in Gorau told the AFP news agency that dozens had already been buried.

Resident Samaila Garba said his 13-year-old granddaughter, Jamila Usman, was among the dead.

“You know, during the rainy season, most women and children go to the farm to work,” he told The Associated Press.

The boat was carrying farmers and workers to rice farms when it overturned while crossing a waterway near Gorau town in the Goronyo Local Government Area.

One resident, Aminu Dan Hajiya, said he goes to his farm using the same waterway and considers himself lucky not to have been on the boat.

“In fact, almost every household in the community has been affected,” he told AP.

Residents said the boat was carrying more than 70 people when it capsized.

Boating accidents are common in Nigeria, with dozens drowning each year on the country’s busy rivers and waterways, often caused by overloading, poor maintenance or failure to comply with safety regulations.

A boat capsized in Jigawa State last month, with at least five people reported to have drowned.

In January, at least 26 people drowned when a boat carrying farmers and fishermen from Jigawa to Yobe State capsized.