A pastor, his wife and scores of church members have died following the capsizing of boat along the Odioma-Brass in Rivers States.
The boat was conveying them to a programme in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State when the accident happened on Friday afternoon.
It was learnt that the canoe capsized due to a heavy rainfall and poor weather conditions.
Many of the passengers were rescued, however, the pastor, his wife and other victims could not make it..
The remains of the pastor’s wife was recovered and deposited at a mortuary, as rescue efforts were ongoing to find the pastor and any other passengers who may still be missing.
The Bayelsa State Police spokesperson, DSP Musa Mohammed, said the casualties figure had not been ascertained, as rescue operations were still underway.
Also, the President of Odioma Community Youths, Moses Inene, confirmed that the pastor and his wife were involved in the accident.
Inene said local divers have been mobilised for search and rescue operations, adding that the corpse of the pastor’s wife had been recovered, efforts were still ongoing to locate the pastor.
