BAYELSA, NIGERIA – Local divers and military personnel in Bayelsa State recovered bodies of three drowned soldiers yesterday in Brass LGA area.
According to Lloyd Sese, Chairman National Maritime Union, Bayelsa State Chapter, said the tragic boat accident that claimed the lives of four soldiers in Brass Local Government area was due to poor logistics and use of low powered engine boats to convoy military personnel.
Mr. Sese, who commented on the incident yesterday in Yenagoa, said the preliminary investigation conducted by the Brass Unit of the Maritime Union showed that the accident could have been avoided if adequate logistics were arranged with high capacity engine boats used.
He stated that “they used small boats with low capacity engines.”
He called on the military authorities to consult the Maritime Union for logistics and transport during such movements, while we commiserate with the Nigerian Military on the loss of their men, “we call on the military to consult those involved in the day to day commercial activities along the creeks and the waterways.”
Earlier, Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman, Acting Director Army Public Relations, confirmed the boat mishap saying “we have not been able to ascertain the number of soldiers who may have lost their lives. It is quite a tragic incident.”
