At least 19 people have died in a boat accident on Lake Mai-Ndombe in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This was reported by the governor of the eponymous province, Nkoso Kewani Lebon, informs UNN with reference to Reuters.
Details
It is noted that the boat departed from the village of Kiri to the country's capital, Kinshasa.
The incident was caused by strong winds on the lake, which disabled one of the boat's two engines, causing it to capsize. "Yesterday we found nine bodies, and today another ten were recovered from the water, bringing the total number of dead to 19," he said.
In turn, the national representative of the Mushie territory in Mai-Ndombe province, Freddy Bonzeke Iliki, estimated that there were at least 200 passengers on the boat and said that the search for bodies was ongoing.
It is after such incidents that we find that the rules regarding tonnage and passenger capacity were not observed.
The publication indicates that river vessels are the main mode of transport in many rural areas of the DRC, but vessels are often outdated, and accidents are frequent.
Recall
More than 3.2 million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo live near erosional channels that destroy entire city blocks. The length of the cracks exceeds 700 km, and their number has almost doubled from 2010 to 2023 due to urban expansion.