Online Reporter
Walter Nyamukondiwa and Freeman Razemba in KARIBA
AS the search for more bodies on Lake Kariba continues, the exact number of passengers on the ferry that capsized last Tuesday remains a mystery as current figures point towards double the carrying capacity.
The death toll in the Kariba ferry disaster has risen to 84 after four more bodies were recovered near Long Island late yesterday afternoon.
National police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the recovery of four more bodies.
“The ZRP reports that the death toll is now 84 after the recovery of four bodies from the lake this afternoon,” said Comm Nyathi.
“The Police confirm that search efforts are still under way in a bid to recover victims identified as missing.”
Search and recovery efforts are expected to continue again this morning.
The 84 bodies recovered as at end of day yesterday are just six short of the ferry’s official capacity of 90 passengers.
Given that 77 were rescued on Tuesday, this takes the number of passengers accounted for to 161 and fast approaching double the official capacity.
Preliminary indications are that the ferry was still in good condition and, thus, its state is not a cause of the disaster.
Meanwhile, the Government has intensified investigations to ascertain the causes surrounding the incident in which 84 bodies have so far been recovered from Lake Kariba after a passenger vessel capsized last Tuesday, with a technical report on the accident set to be presented to Cabinet this week.
Yesterday, Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Advocate Felix Mhona this Sunday met with Lake Kariba boat and ferry operators and visited the scene of the accident.
He was accompanied by Mashonaland West Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Marian Chombo and senior government officials.
So far preliminary investigations began pointing to a navigational error, possible overloading and failure to heed adverse weather warnings as factors that may have contributed to the tragedy.
The passenger ferry is owned by the Rural Infrastructure Development Authority (RIDA) capsized near Long Island on Lake Kariba.
Boat operators in Kariba, who were part of the engagement with the ministers, Cephas Shonhiwa and Nesbit Mapfumo are also helping the government in mobilizing resources to ensure that search and recovering operations continues.
The vessel, formerly under the Department of District Development Fund and now run by RIDA, was caught by strong winds locally known as the Binga Wave during the leg from Kariba town to Chalala Fishing Camp, taking on water through the cabin as the crew battled to keep it afloat.
Video footage taken when it moved off on this leg of its voyage shows the boat already labouring in choppy waters moments before it went under, passengers watching helplessly as the water rose around them.
Mariners had been cautioned to watch for localised choppy conditions as the afternoon winds speeded up over exposed sections of the lake, precisely the conditions in which the ferry capsized.
Preliminary findings suggest that the vessel’s physical condition may not have been the cause of the accident.
Inland Waters Control director in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development Mr Lameck Chitenga said an assessment of the vessel showed that its hull remained intact.
