At least 15 people have died and 27 remain missing after a passenger ferry capsized on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe, according to the country's Civil Protection Unit.
The ferry overturned on Tuesday after encountering large waves, the agency said in a statement, confirming that at least 77 people had been rescued.
The ferry operated a route between the town of Kariba in the north and several islands and fishing camps on the lake. The Civil Protection Unit said the ferry was carrying more passengers than its designed capacity of 90 when the accident occurred.
Although the exact number of passengers and crew has not been released, based on tickets sold, the agency confirmed there were 114 adult passengers on board along with five crew members. The agency also noted there could be some children under the age requiring tickets who were not accounted for.
Zimbabwe's national police said rescue efforts were ongoing. State broadcaster ZBC aired footage of speedboats heading toward the capsized ferry on the lake while a helicopter flew overhead. A diving team was deployed to search and rescue operations on the vast lake.
Witness Maxton Kanhema told AFP that the ferry departed in poor weather conditions and that a wave may have struck the vessel, causing the engine to stop.
"When we were in the water, we could see emergency signals and nearby boats responded," Kanhema said. He said Matusadona National Park had dispatched a helicopter to assist in rescue efforts along with large boats and divers from local authorities and the military.
"People are in distress... There are bodies in the water and it's a heartbreaking sight. Those who could be saved have been saved," he added. "However, due to bad weather, the response was somewhat delayed. Reaching the ferry took time and unfortunately people died."
Lake Kariba lies on Zimbabwe's border with Zambia, more than 300 kilometers northeast of the capital Harare. It is the world's largest man-made lake by volume, created in the late 1950s and early 1960s by damming the Zambezi River, forming a vast reservoir over 200 kilometers long and up to 40 kilometers wide in places.
