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At Least 50 Feared Dead as Ferry Capsizes in Democratic Congo
At least 50 people were feared drowned after a ferry capsized in the harbor of the eastern Congolese lakeside town of Goma on Thursday, according to reports reaching Nairobi.
The reports said passengers and people who had come to see them off had rushed on to the boat from the exposed jetty to take shelter when it started to rain heavily, and the overcrowded boat had capsized shortly afterwards.
The 20 meter by six meter vessel was on its way south to the town of Bukavu on Lake Kivu, 70 kilometers away, but capsized by the jetty, just 10 meters from the harbor shore, at around 5:30 p. m. (1530 GMT).
"Only a few people managed to swim and got out of the waters," added the reports.
Rescue operations were being conducted by survivors, relatives, dockworkers and Red Cross employees, while family members stood in tears along the port.
Goma lies close to the Rwandan border and is the headquarters of the Rwandan-backed Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD), a rebel movement which controls much of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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