A ferry collapsed a few hundred meters from its destination on Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and at least twenty dead have been discovered.
The boat capsized on Thursday morning as it approached the shore of Goma from the South Kivu village of Minova.
The boat is seen swaying to one side and finally sinking in a video that has gone viral.
Although the exact number of passengers is still unknown, multiple survivors told the Reuters news agency that the ship may have carried as many as 200 people.
About 45 men and 35 women were registered as passengers, according to a local migration authority quoted by Reuters; however, their ages have not been confirmed.
Aaron Ashuza, a local activist who is near the coast, told the BBC that he witnessed the removal of remains from the river and that the injured had been sent to a hospital.
At least two toddlers died after they were rushed to hospital after the accident, according to AFP.
These kinds of incidents happen a lot in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where boats are usually packed full of people who don’t always have life jackets on and can’t swim.
Because some ships hardly ever have passenger manifests, rescue attempts are made more challenging.
(BBC)
