In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a tragedy has just struck the country with the sinking of a boat on the Congo River. The authorities report to date a death toll of thirty and around a hundred people missing, but these figures still remain uncertain.
The sinking occurred on October 13, 2023 near Mbandaka, in the province of Équateur. The whaleboat was carrying more than 400 people at the time of the accident, which occurred just after leaving the port of Bankita in Mbandaka. The exact circumstances of the accident remain to be determined, but the first statements from officials point to the overloading of the boat and night navigation outside conventional hours.
Research is still underway to find survivors and recover the bodies of the victims. The current assessment is provisional, because between 100 and 200 people are still missing. The authorities are looking for the shipowner, who is believed to be on the run, and have not yet found the ship’s manifest. The Congolese Minister of Transport requested the establishment of a multi-party investigation to shed light on the exact circumstances of the accident.
This accident occurred a few hours after a meeting of the Council of Ministers, during which the question of river navigation was discussed. President Félix Tshisekedi had expressed the need to put in place measures to avoid such deadly shipwrecks, which are frequent and often caused by problems such as overloading boats, poor marking of waterways, night navigation and non-compliance. boats.
In conclusion, this shipwreck on the Congo River in the DRC causes numerous victims and adds to the list of tragic accidents that regularly occur in the country. It is therefore urgent to take measures to improve the safety of river navigation and avoid such tragedies in the future. An investigation is underway to determine responsibility for this tragedy and hopefully this will lead to concrete measures to prevent such accidents in the future.