Tragic Ferry Capsizing in North-Eastern Congo Claims 38 Lives, Over 100 Missing

 

A ferry carrying passengers returning home for Christmas capsized on the Busira River in north-eastern Congo late Friday, resulting in at least 38 confirmed deaths and leaving over 100 others missing, according to local officials and eyewitnesses on Saturday. So far, 20 people have been rescued from the wreckage.

The ferry, part of a convoy of vessels, was primarily transporting merchants heading home for the festive season. Joseph Kangolingoli, the mayor of Ingende, the last town before the site of the accident, confirmed the tragedy. Eyewitness Ndolo Kaddy, a resident of Ingende, reported that the ferry was carrying over 400 people, including passengers from two different ports, raising concerns that the death toll could be higher.

This latest incident occurred less than four days after a separate boat capsized in the country’s north-east, killing 25 people. The frequent capsizing of overloaded boats has become a serious issue in Congo, where the lack of accessible roads forces many to rely on overburdened ferries, despite warnings from authorities about safety violations.

The Congolese government has previously vowed to address these safety concerns and punish those responsible for violating regulations, but locals often have little choice but to use the overcrowded vessels due to limited transportation options. In October, a similar tragedy claimed the lives of 78 people when another overloaded boat sank in the country’s east, and in June, a capsizing near Kinshasa killed 80.

The latest incident has sparked widespread outrage, particularly regarding the failure to provide flotation devices for passengers. Nesty Bonina, a local government official from Mbandaka, the capital of Equateur province, criticized the authorities for allowing the ferry to operate at night without proper oversight. “How can a ship navigate at night under the watchful eye of river service agents? And now we’re recording over a hundred deaths,” Bonina said.

The increasing frequency of these tragedies highlights the dire state of river transport in the country, as many people are forced to rely on wooden boats to travel, often due to the insecurity on land routes, where ongoing clashes between Congolese forces and rebels frequently disrupt road access.