Zimbabwe police on Saturday (Aug 16) confirmed that 22 more bodies have been recovered following the ferry sinking on Lake Kariba, bringing the death toll to 68. Among the victims are 18 children, according to the police force. The incident is regarded as the most severe waterway disaster ever recorded in Zimbabwe.
The ferry capsized on Tuesday (Aug 12) on Lake Kariba, near the border with Zambia. Preliminary investigations indicate the ferry was overloaded when it encountered strong winds and overturned. Most passengers are believed to have been villagers and fish traders living around the lake area.
Local authorities said the vessel was licensed to carry a maximum of 90 people, but in reality it was carrying 114 adults, five crew members, and an unknown number of children.
Lt. Col. Joseph Muchechesi, commander of the search and rescue operation, said: "Today, we have recovered 22 bodies. We believe we will be able to retrieve all of the remaining bodies." Previously, the civil protection unit had reported that 77 people were rescued alive on Wednesday (Aug 13).
Hundreds of people have gathered at the district hospital in the lakeside town of Kariba to identify the bodies of their loved ones. A public memorial service was held in Kariba, about 280 kilometers northwest of the capital Harare, on Thursday (Aug 14) before funerals began.
According to survivor accounts, they pleaded with the ferry driver to turn back immediately after leaving the dock because water had already begun flooding into the vessel. Chance Siyamavhu, 45, recounted to AFP: "Thank God a wave pushed the sinking ferry and we managed to climb on top. When the ferry capsized, most people scrambled for life jackets but many did not know how to use them. Many people did not survive."
Lake Kariba is the world's largest artificial lake by volume, stretching over 200 kilometers and up to 40 kilometers wide at points. It was created in the 1950s during British colonial rule when the Zambezi River dam was built, displacing approximately 57,000 people.
This is not the first boat disaster on Lake Kariba. In 2014, 26 people, including 24 children, died when the boat carrying them to an independence day celebration capsized on the Zambian side of the lake. On the Zimbabwean side, five passengers died in a similar accident in 2021.
