A 13-year-old student of Ihyau El-Burhan Academy in Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory has been swept away by flood while on his way to school with his father.
Daily Trust reported that the incident occurred on Wednesday after the boy, identified as Alhassan Jamil, fell into a flooded channel while his father was riding him to school on a motorcycle. The incident happened around a double-cell culvert as the father attempted to cross the area.
The boy’s father, Jamil Maikasuwa, said that he was taking his son to school from their Old Kutunku residence when he noticed that the floodwater was moving rapidly. He said he applied the motorcycle’s brakes, but his son became frightened and jumped off the motorcycle.
Maikasuwa said he immediately abandoned the motorcycle and attempted to rescue the boy by reaching for his hand. However, the force of the flood carried the teenager away before he could pull him to safety.
The father, who serves as Special Assistant to the Chairman of Gwagwalada Area Council on Domestic Affairs, said efforts were ongoing to locate his son. He added that the boy’s body had not been recovered.
According to Maikasuwa, some residents living close to the riverbank claimed to have seen what appeared to be the boy’s body floating in the water, with his school bag still strapped to his back.
He said fishermen and divers had subsequently been mobilised to search the waterways for the missing student.
