Tag Archives: Boat disaster

Regional, Travel & Tourism

Ghana: Boat disaster kills eight pupils

Maravi Post Reporter
Eight pupils have died in Ghana’s Bono Region when a boat in which they were travelling capsized.

 

The incident occurred on the Volta Lake whilst the pupils were travelling to school.

Reports say the deceased were among 20 school children in the boat who were travelling from Atikagome to Wayokope, where their school is located.

12 pupils managed to swim to safety. Some of them are recuperating at a health facility in the area.

Officials from Ghana’s National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) are investigating the incident.

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According to NADMO, the deceased are made up of five boys and three girls between the ages of five and 12.

Ibrahim Wudonyim, a local disaster management director in the affected Sene East District said that before they got to the accident scene, some community members and Marine Police had managed to retrieve all the eight bodies from the Lake.

He explained that the that the boat capsized midway at 7am. The bodies have been sent to Atikagome, a fishing community.

The community has been thrown into mourning, shock and fear as a result of the incident.

Boat disaster kills over 60 in Democratic Republic of Congo

Source: Africafeeds.com

Source: Africa Feeds

Regional, Travel & Tourism

DR Congo: 145 passengers missing in boat disaster

Maravi Post Reporter
At least 145 passengers are reported missing after a boat with goods and animals sank in a river in the northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Local authorities said that about 55 people survived the disaster which happened on Tuesday night.

The boat which was heading for neighbouring Republic of Congo capsized on the Lulonga River near the town of Basankusu.

Jean-Pierre Wangela, president of civil society groups in the region, blamed the sinking on an overload.

“There are no other means of transportation currently in our province and here in Basankusu territory,” he said.

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Residents are said to have very few other options to making such a journey.

Deadly shipwrecks are all common in remote areas of the DR Congo, where travel by road is sometimes impossible.

In October, more than 40 people died on the Congo River in Equateur Province in similar circumstances.

Over 25,000 children gone missing in Africa

Source: Africa Feeds

Regional, Travel & Tourism

Boat with 160 passengers onboard sinks in Niger River

Maravi Post Reporter

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Nigerian authorities have said that a boat with 160 passengers onboard on Wednesday sank in the Niger River.

The accident happened due to what reports say was as a result of an overloaded boat.

The boat was meant to ferry not more than 80 passengers, according to officials who revealed that the vessel was also loaded with bags of sand from a gold mine.

Close to 140 people are still said to be missing in northwest Nigeria, a local official said.

Abdullahi Buhari Wara, administrative head of Ngaski district told the media that the boat left central Niger state and was heading to northwest Kebbi state when it split and sank.

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“A rescue operation is underway but only 22 survivors and one dead body have been recovered,” Wara said adding “We are talking of around 140 passengers still missing.”

Boat disasters are becoming common in Nigeria with 30 people drowning this month when an overloaded boat capsized in central Niger state.

Traveling on boats is also common in communities as it has become a significant means of traveling to work, school among others.

Man drowns trying to rescue $20 note in river

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Source: Africafeeds.com

Source: Africa Feeds

Regional

Boat disaster kills over 60 in Democratic Republic of Congo

Maravi Post Reporter

More than 60 people have drowned after a boat capsized in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Some 300 people have been rescued but as many as 200 others are unaccounted for following the accident on the Congo River.

Reports say the boat hit a rock east of the capital, Kinshasa, while travelling at night, which is prohibited.

DR Congo’s humanitarian affairs minister Steve Mbikayi has indicated that the boat was also overloaded.

“These are the reasons that caused this wreck with over 60 dead. We have managed to rescue 300 survivors while search and rescue operations are on-going,” he added.

Reports quote residents seeing floating dead bodies in the water.

The boat was headed for Mbandaka, the capital of DR Congo’s Equateur province, around 700 kilometres (435 miles) from Kinshasa.

Boat accidents are common in DR Congo mainly due to overcrowding.

In April, at least 167 people died in two boat accidents on Lake Kivu.

President Félix Tshisekedi has since made it mandatory for passengers to wear live jackets.

Ex-CAR officer arrested in France for war crimes

Source: Africafeeds.com

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