By Swift Reporter
At least 15 people have died after a ferry capsized on Zimbabwe’s Lake Kariba amid bad weather, triggering a major search and rescue operation involving helicopters, boats and divers.
Authorities said 77 people had been rescued by Tuesday, although the exact number of passengers who were on board remained unclear.
Zimbabwe’s Civil Protection Unit said the vessel was designed to carry 90 passengers and five crew members. However, ticketing records indicated that 114 adults were on board, with an unknown number of children who were below the ticketing age.
The discrepancy has raised concerns that the number of people who were on the ferry could have been significantly higher than its official capacity.
Rescue teams were deployed to the scene as authorities continued searching the lake for survivors and victims. Helicopters, boats and divers were involved in the operation, although poor weather conditions reportedly delayed their arrival.
A witness said the ferry had departed in the morning despite the bad weather and may have been struck by a large wave. The impact reportedly caused the vessel’s engines to switch off before it capsized.
The ferry operates between the northern Zimbabwean town of Kariba and several islands and fishing camps located on the vast lake.
Lake Kariba, which is shared by Zimbabwe and Zambia, is one of Africa’s most prominent inland water bodies and the world’s largest man-made lake by volume.
The lake was created in the late 1950s and early 1960s following the construction of the Kariba Dam across the Zambezi River. The valley gradually filled with water, forming a vast lake stretching for more than 200 kilometres and reaching about 40 kilometres in width in some areas.
Authorities were expected to continue the search and rescue operation as efforts intensified to establish the full number of people who were aboard the ferry and account for those still missing.
The incident has raised fresh concerns about passenger safety and the challenges of operating vessels on Lake Kariba, particularly during severe weather conditions.
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