An overloaded ferry tragically overturned on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe, resulting in the loss of at least 15 lives, with 27 individuals still unaccounted for, as reported by the national disaster management agency. The agency disclosed that 77 individuals were successfully rescued and transported to an island within the lake.
Zimbabwe’s Civil Protection Unit indicated that while ticket sales confirmed 114 adult passengers were on board, there might have been additional children below the ticketing age who were not included in the count. The ferry also carried five crew members, surpassing its recommended capacity of 90 passengers.
Footage shared by Mutsa Murombedzi, a local Parliament member, captured the ferry departing with passengers waving from the shore. The vessel, identified as the RIDA boat named Mbuya Nehanda, was a vital mode of transport for rural communities traveling from Kariba to the town of Kariba, despite concerns about its ability to withstand rough waves.
Zimbabwean authorities initiated a rescue operation, with video footage from the state broadcaster ZBC showing speedboats and a helicopter at the scene of the overturned boat on Lake Kariba. Lake Kariba, shared between Zimbabwe and Zambia, is the world’s largest man-made lake by volume, formed in the late 1950s and early 1960s by damming the Zambezi River. The lake spans over 200 kilometers in length and up to 40 kilometers in width, with the official border between Zimbabwe and Zambia running through its center.