Boat Collision on the Congo River Killed at Least 30 and Dozens Are Missing, Congolese Officials Say
Search teams are still looking for survivors after the collision, which authorities say left at least 30 people dead and dozens missing.
- Two motorized wooden boats collided on Sunday on the Congo River near Ngombe-Lukolela in Equateur province, killing at least 30 people and leaving dozens missing, provincial Interior Minister Crispin Mputu confirmed Monday.
- One vessel was traveling from Ubangi in the northwest to Kinshasa, while the other departed Kinshasa bound for Lukolela, as Mputu indicated night-time river travel has historically caused numerous accidents.
- A security force member who witnessed the crash told The Associated Press the Ubangi-bound boat was overloaded with goods when it collided with the incoming vessel; "Almost all the passengers on board were trapped underwater, and the boat itself also sank."
- The 30 fatalities have already been buried, Mputu told The Associated Press, while search efforts continue to locate additional victims and survivors; the cause of the collision remains unclear.
- Poor safety standards and inadequate infrastructure in remote regions have contributed to hundreds of deaths in boat disasters in recent years, with a July incident in Kasai province where a student vessel sank killing at least 20 people.
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The Minister of the Interior of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Crispin Mbutu, declared 22 dead following the collision of two boats they were carrying in the Congo River.
The death toll could rise as many passengers remain unaccounted for. The sunken boat remains in the Congo River bed, at a depth estimated at around 12 metres. The post Congo: At least 22 dead after two boats collide in river appeared first on in.gr.
At least 22 dead after two boats collide on Congo river, official says
DAKAR, Oct 5 (Reuters) - At least 22 people have died after two boats collided on the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of Congo, an official said. The incident occurred near the town of Ngombe in Lukolela territory in western Equateur province ...
Two boats collided overnight on the Congo River. At least thirty people died, and rescuers are searching for dozens more missing.
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