On Wednesday morning, a boat collapsed in Ugandan waters on Lake Victoria, killing twenty persons, authorities said, while rescuers and local residents looked for survivors.
“So far 20 people have been confirmed dead, and nine (9) rescued,” the Uganda police force said on Twitter, which is being rebranded as X.
The boat was carrying charcoal, fresh food and fish when the accident occurred around 5:00 am (0200 GMT), the police said.
“The cause of (the) accident is attributed to overloading and bad weather,” they added, saying that around 34 people were believed to be onboard.
“We appeal to members of the public who travel on waters to always wear life jackets and not to overload their vessels.”
Overcrowding and bad weather have been blamed for numerous boat mishaps on Africa’s largest lake.
In November 2018, 32 people were killed after a pleasure boat capsized on Lake Victoria during poor weather, according to Uganda police, who said the vessel had more than 90 passengers on board.
The MV Nyerere passenger ferry sank on the Tanzanian side of Lake Victoria in September of that year, killing hundreds.
Lake Victoria, with a surface area of 70,000 square kilometers (27,000 square miles), is nearly the size of Ireland and is shared by Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya.
Ferries frequently capsize on the lake, and the number of fatalities is generally high due to a lack of life jackets and the fact that few people know how to swim.
Boats are frequently overloaded and badly maintained as the only mode of transportation in sections of Africa’s Great Lakes region.
Accidents are also common along Lake Albert, which divides Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
When their boat sank on Lake Albert in December 2020, at least 26 passengers died. The weather was blamed for the accident.
