The Nigerian Medical Students Association in Nigeria has blamed the management of Marina Resort in Calabar, Cross River State, for the death of three of its members in a boat mishap.

The National President of the association, Ejim Egba, stated this in a statement on Monday.

Three out of 14 medical students who were on a boat cruise at Marina Resort got drowned after the speed boat they were inside capsized on Saturday, PREMIUM TIMES reported.

The students, who were in the state for the annual Health Week hosted by the University of Calabar, were on a boat cruise to explore the area when the tragic incident occurred.

Cross River State Governor Bassey Otu, in his reaction to the incident, ordered an indefinite suspension of all cruise boat operations at the resort and urged the police to expedite action on investigation and prosecute those found culpable.

The president of the students’ association, Mr Egba, said the tragic accident occurred because of “negligence, incompetence, and lackadaisical attitude of the crew members and management of Marina Resort.”

“Factors that contributed to this occurrence include leaky boat, poor condition and integrity of the vests, poorly maintained engines resulting in the engine going off during the trip, fuel finishing before they got back to shore, little or no supervision by management, poor regulation and monitoring,” Mr Egba said.

Mr Egba said the association’s leadership acted swiftly to ensure that the 11 rescued students were taken to hospital for treatment and added that 10 of them have been discharged while the one left is in stable condition and will soon be discharged.

The association president commended the Nigerian Navy, locals and the management of the University of Calabar for their swift response when the incident occurred.

(Premium Times)