Footballer drowns after rescuing five passengers in Bayelsa flood

***Corpse recovered two days after drowning

Eric Olusesan/Port Harcourt

Sports fans, and indeed a lot Bayelsans have been thrown into mourning since the corpse of a 31 years old footballer, Ernest Peremobowei was recovered two days after he drowned in the rampaging flood at Yenebelebiri community, Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

According to reports, the late Ernest Peremobowei was drown and later died due to exhaustion after saving five other occupants of a boat that capsized in the ferocious flood.

The sketchy information gathered was that the late footballer was said to be on his way to Yenebelebiri community in company of five persons when their boat smashed into the Government Jetty Barge and they lost control. 

It further gathered from Eyewitnesses that Ernest Peremobowei popularly known as Tido lost his life while saving others on the 19th Day of October, 2022 was able to save five passengers in their ill-fated boat.

It was said that the late Ernest who hails from  Sagbama Local Government Area of Bayelsa State is a father of two children, a son of 3years and a daughter of 10months old. Like other Bayelsans sacked from their homes by the flood, Ernest was sailing it to save  his households properties on the fateful day. That was at the time, the whole Bebelebiri 2 community had been taken over by the ravaging flood.

As he was sailing home late in the evening, he encountered some young boys who appealed to him to assist them with his boat by crossing them over from the Federal Medical Centre, FMC, jetty to Bebelebiri 2, he aceeded to their pleas and decided to help.

However, the tidal waves in the water that evening was too ferocious for him to control. The local hand made boat rammed into concrete pillars Government jetty that capsized the boat. 

The late Peremobowei dared the odds and was able to rescue five of the passengers onboard with him from drowning, but was too exhausted afterwards and couldn’t save himself. His body was not found after a search party went in search of it the evening of the incident.

The lifeless body was later found floating on the water after two days from the incident and has been taken to Federal Medical Centre, FMC, Mortuary Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

Before his death Mr. Ernest Peremobowei was a footballer, he played for Old Selected Stars of Kpansia, Eternal Grace FC EGM, SONS FC and was just invited to festival team of Bayelsa State hoping to report on Saturday 22, October 2022.

The Brother to the deceased, Earnest Komboye, who confirmed the incident, said the brother died of exhaustion after saving five occupants of his ill-fated boat.