At least 148 people have been confirmed dead following a tragic boat accident in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to multiple media reports citing local officials.
The disaster occurred on Tuesday when a motorised wooden vessel carrying around 500 passengers, many of them women and children, caught fire and capsized on the Congo River in the country’s northwestern region.
Initial reports had placed the death toll at around 50, but that figure has significantly risen.
Senator Jean-Paul Boketsu Bofili from Equateur province confirmed on Friday that approximately 500 people were aboard the vessel.
He stated, “As we speak, more than 150 survivors suffering from third-degree burns are without humanitarian assistance.”
Such tragedies are unfortunately not uncommon in the central African nation, where boat accidents frequently occur due to factors such as nighttime travel, overloading, and the use of aging, wooden vessels that serve as primary modes of transportation between rural communities.
Officials now estimate that hundreds more remain unaccounted for. The ill-fated boat, identified as HB Kongolo, caught fire near the town of Mbandaka after departing from Matankumu en route to Bolomba territory.
Sky News reported that approximately 100 survivors have been moved to a makeshift shelter at the town hall, while others with severe burn injuries are receiving treatment in local hospitals.
River commissioner, Compétent Loyoko, told the Associated Press that the fire broke out while a woman was cooking on board. In the chaos that followed, many passengers, particularly women and children, leapt into the river, but tragically drowned as they were unable to swim.
This recent catastrophe echoes previous maritime tragedies in the region. Earlier in 2024, a boat capsized in Lake Kivu in eastern Congo, resulting in 78 deaths out of 278 passengers.
Another incident in December claimed at least 22 lives when a riverboat sank in western Congo.
