2-year-old boy drowns in Lokoja river

A two-year-old boy, Godwin Kumfa, has drowned in the Meme River in Lokoja, the capital of Kogi State.

The incident occurred behind the Navy Quarters, Phase Two Extension, in Lokoja at about 7:30 a.m. on Monday, July 7, 2025.

The boy’s father, Mamtip Kumfa, disclosed that he received a distress call from a neighbour at about 7:30 a.m. that the boy was missing.

Kumfa, a security guard at a private school, said he returned home to find his wife searching frantically at the riverside.

He stated that his wife had left Godwin sitting by the river while she went to collect sand and returned to find him gone.

Kumfa said: “Godwin was left alone by the river while she gathered sand.

“Later, we found one of his shoes near Arigbede, about 15km downstream. I’m lost. Godwin is my only son.”

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A family friend, Seun Babalola, said they trailed the river path, but could only find the boy’s shoe downstream.

He revealed that a similar tragedy had happened at the same river two years ago, involving a young boy.

Babalola said: “Two years ago, a seven-year-old named Goodluck Friday also drowned here. It’s painful.

“We don’t know if it’s natural or something else. Only God knows.”

The community remains in shock, as family, friends, and neighbours rally around the grieving parents.

Efforts to recover the boy (or his remains) were still ongoing by local search parties.

The Star