Four Military Officers Drown In Brass River

FOUR MILITARY OPERATIVES DROWN IN BRASS RIVER

Four operatives attached to the military operation against militants, codenamed ‘Operation Crocodile Smile,’ were reportedly drowned on Monday following a boat mishap that occurred in the Brass waterfront in Brass Local Government Area of the Bayelsa State.

The incident,  was said to have occurred at about 10am when the boat carrying the victims and their colleagues was hit by high waves as it was about to berth, thereby  throwing over board the travelers who were coming from Yenagoa.

The soldiers were said be among the new contingents deployed to the area against renewed militancy, piracy and search for those threatening to hoist the ‘Niger Delta Republic’ flag on October 1.

An indigene of the community, identified simply as Etta, said attempts by community youth and other soldiers to assist in a rescue operation failed as the drowned soldiers could not be found.

Etta said, “In recent times, we have been noticing increased movement of soldiers in our area. The boat that capsized was conveying a new batch of soldiers to the waterfront.

“I was going to dispose of refuse at the waterfront when I saw uniformed soldiers struggling to rescue their colleagues in a capsized boat.

"When the confusion subsided, four soldiers were found to be missing with their rifles and other military gear. Those that were rescued had their rifles missing, and struggling out of the water.”

It was gathered that when military authorities could not locate the victims, they decided to seek the assistance of local divers and youth in the search for their missing colleagues.

One of the youth that participated in the search operation, said the high tide impeded the search for the missing soldiers.

The state Chairman of the Maritime Union, Mr. Lyyod Sese, who confirmed the incident, said the union has not received the report on the boat incident.

“We do not have details of the number of casualties,” Sese said.

However, efforts to reach the Joint Military Task Force,  Operation Delta Safe, were not successful as calls to the Acting Coordinator of the Joint Media Campaign Centre, could not be picked as at the time of going to press.