Death toll from Zimbabwe ferry disaster rises to 69

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Police investigations suggest that the boat was overloaded when it overturned on Lake Kariba. It was carrying an estimated 153 people when it left Kariba town harbour, but its maximum authorised capacity was for just 90 passengers.

list 1 of 3Dozens dead and missing after ferry capsizes in Zimbabwe.

Número de mortos sobe para 44 após ferry capotar em lago no Zimbábue.

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Among the victims were at least 18 children, including 16 under the age of 10, according to state broadcaster ZBC. Among the youngest identified victims were one-year-old Wendy Ndandarika and 14-month-old McDonald Nyasha Gumpo and Hailly Tauro, according to local media reports.

The captain, Sign Patsikadova, 59, is also among the confirmed dead.

Search and recovery operations involving police divers, military personnel and local fishermen continued on Saturday, authorities said.

Funcionários de gestão de desastres disseram que 77 pessoas foram resgatadas logo após o naufrágio da embarcação. Muitas foram levadas para uma ilha próxima antes de serem transferidas para instalações de saúde na cidade de Kariba.

Survivors told reporters that high winds generated choppy waves that flooded the boat shortly after departure. Passengers had urged the operator to turn back towards the shore, but the vessel continued into open water before rolling over.

Some homes have lost more than one relative.

The government has declared a national disaster and deployed welfare agencies to distribute food to affected households.

The ferry served as a vital lifeline for remote fishing communities along the lake, connecting them to food supplies, markets and essential services. Its loss has already begun affecting food deliveries, with shops that depended on the vessel facing shortages, residents told The Herald.

Acidentes no lago, o maior reservatório artificial do mundo em volume, são relativamente raros, tornando o naufrágio um dos piores desastres marítimos do país em décadas.

Lake Kariba lies on Zimbabwe’s border with Zambia, more than 300km (186 miles) northeast of the capital Harare.

• Funcionários de gestão de desastres disseram que 77 pessoas foram resgatadas logo após o naufrágio da embarca.
• Lake Kariba lies on Zimbabwe’s border with Zambia, more than 300km (186 miles) northeast of the capital Harare.