A boat conveying church members to a religious programme reportedly capsized along the Odioma-Brass River in Brass Local Government Area, leaving the pastor’s wife dead and many others missing.
The incident was said to have occurred on Friday, during a heavy downpour, with poor weather conditions believed to have contributed to the accident.
The victims were among several church members travelling to Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, for a church programme when the boat overturned mid-journey.
Although several passengers were reportedly rescued alive, the pastor and his wife were among those severely affected by the mishap.
Residents and local rescuers later recovered the body of the pastor’s wife, which has since been deposited in a mortuary, while search operations continued for the pastor and other passengers feared missing.
Confirming the incident, the spokesperson for the Bayelsa State Police Command, DSP Musa Mohammed, said authorities were yet to determine the exact number of casualties as rescue efforts were still ongoing.
According to him, operatives of the Marine Unit of the Nigeria Police Force had joined local rescuers in the search operation.
“The number of casualties cannot be confirmed for now because rescue efforts are still ongoing,” he said.
Also speaking on the tragedy, the Youth President of Odioma Community, Moses Inene, confirmed that the pastor and his wife were involved in the boat accident.
He said local divers had been mobilised to intensify rescue efforts in the river.
“Inene said the corpse of the pastor’s wife has been recovered, while efforts are still ongoing to locate the pastor,” a community source familiar with the operation disclosed.
