Emergency Officials have recovered the bodies of at least 33 people after a crowded boat capsized in the Niger River in north-western Nigeria.

They claimed that they were able to rescue 84 of the boat’s passengers while 30 remained unaccounted for.

The accident was blamed on overloading of the boat, and it was just one of many boats that had capsized in Nigeria due to being overcrowded.

The unfortunate occurrence took place on Wednesday morning in the remote area of Lolo village, Kebbi State while the boat was travelling from Niger, but details only started emerging on Friday.

The boat carried traders from Niger who were planning to attend a village market in Nigeria.

A coordinator for Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Suleiman Mohammed Karim, revealed that the boat had a capacity of 70, but the survivors said that they were 150 on board, with their goods.

Suleiman, talking about the bodies unaccounted for, said “Having spent two days on the water, we presume they are all dead.”