he people of Oferekpe community in Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State are in mourning. Four persons, including two children and two women, lost their lives recently when the boat in which they were travelling capsized, throwing the passengers into the river.
Property worth several thousands of naira were equally lost in the incident, which took place when the victims were travelling the to Ofornom in Obubra Local Government Area of Cross River State for the burial of an in-law.
We gathered that the people, mostly women and children, had chartered a boat and were going for the burial of an in-law in the neighbouring border community in Cross River State when the incident happened. It was learnt that the engine of the boat suddenly developed a fault during the journey. The driver, a 23-year-old man, called Oyon Agbor, attempted to effect repair, which he was unable to do. In the process, the boat hit a big log and capsized, and four persons drowned in the river.
Narrating the sad incident, an eyewitness that survived the mishap, Mrs. Helen Agbor Junior, said she was rescued after staying on top of the boat for hours. Said she: “We were in the middle of the journey when the canoe started behaving funny.
Then suddenly, it hit a log and capsized. As it capsized, some people started to swim out and while they were doing that others were inside the water. Since I do not know how to swim, I was on top of the canoe until a man from Afikpo came and rescued me.
“The accident happened in the night and it was in the evening of that fateful day that the people of the area had the burial. It was because the engine of the boat was not in good condition that we left in the night, and because it was night, the captain did not see the log.
Apart from the human casualties, other things that were lost in the water include food, drinks and other things meant for the burial. Since the decease was an in-law, it is the custom that we should attend the burial. The accident was bad because since I was born, it was my first experience. Since this incident, I’ve been so scared of going near the river.”
Emmanuel Agbor Eworo, who is mourning the loss of his wife and mother of his two children, 24-year-old Jennifer who died in the incident, said the situation was pathetic. He explained that his wife, in company with others, was travelling for a burial at Ofornom Obubra Local Government area of Cross River State when the canoe in which they were travelling capsized and they drowned.
“She has two children for me,” he lamented. “The person they were going to bury was an in-law to the family as she was married to my younger brother. Her death has added another burden to me as she has left the small children for me to take care of.”
Since the incident, the boat driver, Oyon Agbor, has been devastated. He’s still finding it hard, recovering from the shock and he has since not embarked on any other journey in the boat. He said: “On that day, as we got in the middle of the river, the boat developed an engine problem. When I tried to restart the boat again, it refused to start and I allowed it to continue sailing like that without putting the engine on. But, unfortunately, there was heavy current, and since the engine was faulty, the boat capsized. When it happened, those who knew how to swim managed to come out and those who were unable to swim drowned.
“When we found ourselves in the situation, I could not do anything. That was why I allowed the boat to move along with the wave of the river. As we were rolling along with the current, I did not realize there was a big log. The boat hit the log and capsized. “But when the accident happened, I tried to save those who were unable to swim. But there were many passengers carrying small children that could not swim.
“They hired the boat and they were up to 40 men, women and children. My boat is big enough to carry more than the passengers in the boat when it capsized, so it was not overloaded with passengers. I have not experienced that kind of mishap before since I started this job; this is my first experience. “I have not done any other thing since 2004.
But I have not been feeling fine since this incident. The shock is affecting me and I feel bad that somebody died as a result of my boat accident. As our tradition demands, we don’t discus issues bordering on their death with people. The people do not avoid me because of the accident and they do not avoid me or avoid my boat because of the accident. But as the river is dry now, there is no business in the water. That is why nobody has come to board my boat. People are not scared of me. Nobody sees me as a witch because of the accident.
Nobody feels I carried people and sacrificed them to the marine gods.” One of the villagers, Oden Cyril, said he didn’t believe it was the marine spirit that caused the accident that occurred on January 26, as was being rumoured in some quarters. His words: “The people were going for a burial in Obubra Local Government area of Cross River State. As they were going, the man piloting the boat was battling with the engine. At a point they collided with a log beside the river and as a result of the water current that pushed them to collide with the log of wood, the canoe capsized and some of the people were drowned, including two little kids and two ladies.
But the rest of the 40 passengers were rescued that night. Other things that were lost in the water include motorcycle and household materials. It was later in the morning that some of the divers went and rescued some of the materials, even as the entertainment outfit contracted to provide music in the night also lost his equipment in the water. But he succeeded in recovering his generator and DVD. “I don’t believe in marine spirits. So, I believe it is natural, based on what is on ground. I see it as an accident which happens in every circumstance.
I don’t see any spiritual reading in the matter. People of the community have been in grief since that night. They felt sad and were all in mourning which lasted for some days. Such accidents have been happening along the Cross River, only that the community had not experienced it until now. People have been drowning in Oferekpe and since we live with the water people have been drowning and we are not scared to avoid going into the water because it has formed part of us. We will continue to do our business in the water. We fish, farm and trade with our neighbours across the river.
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