Online Reporter
Walter Nyamukondiwa-Mash West Bureau Chief
SEVENTY-SEVEN people were rescued while 15 bodies were retrieved after a passenger ferry owned by the Rural Infrastructure Development Authority capsized near Long Island on Lake Kariba yesterday afternoon, but 27 others plus an unknown number of young children were still unaccounted for last night.
Among the dead was the captain of Mbuya Nehanda ferry.
Total numbers aboard the ferry when it capsized were still unknown last night. Besides the crew and passengers with tickets, there would probably have been young children who do not need a ticket when with a parent.
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.
The localised weather bulletin for the lake had pointed largely to calm conditions and light breezes with the high-pressure ridge extending from South Africa up into Zimbabwe and Zambia.
That same bulletin, however, had flagged a strengthening South Indian Ocean anticyclone bringing a moderate gradient and light-to-moderate north-easterly to south-easterly airflow, with winds expected to touch Force 1 to Force 2 and occasionally Force 3 in the afternoon.
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.
A ferry (inset) travelling from Kariba to Chalala fishing camp capsized.
Mashonaland West provincial Director of Local Government Services Mrs Cecilia Chitiyo confirmed the disaster while reporting to provincial authorities yesterday, giving the first detailed account of the scale of the tragedy and the response under way.
She said the rescued passengers had been ferried to safety by Matusadonha rescue teams and other responders and were being held on Long Island in the lake while the Civil Protection Unit worked to bring them ashore.
“The CPU has mobilised boats to bring them on land and this is currently happening,” she said.
On the fatalities, Mrs Chitiyo said 15 bodies had so far been retrieved from the water, with Nyaradzo and Doves funeral parlours engaged to collect the remains.
The confirmed figures left about 27 people still unaccounted for, and she cautioned that the number could shift once the undisclosed number of young children below ticketing age was added in.
The Police Sub-Aqua Unit has since been airlifted to the scene to reinforce the search and rescue effort, joining the Civil Protection Unit, Matusadonha teams, boat owners, an African Parks helicopter and members of the surrounding community already on the water.
“This is the report to date, but you will be continuously updated as the search and rescue unfolds,” Mrs Chitiyo said.
Government has moved swiftly to respond to the disaster. RIDA director-general Mr Christopher Shumba and Mashonaland West provincial secretary Mr Josphat Jaji were among senior officials who headed to Kariba yesterday to oversee the rescue and recovery operation. Minister of State for Masonaland West Marian Chombo is expected in Kariba this morning to assess the situation on the ground and engage affected families.
In her report, Mrs Chitiyo recommended that the accident be declared a state of disaster, a call that, if adopted, would open the door to additional national resources and coordinated support for survivors and the families of those still missing.
Search and rescue operations were continuing at the time of going to print, with authorities warning that both the death toll and the number of accounted-for survivors would change as verification continues.
Mr Shumba confirmed that the Mbuya Nehanda ferry captain had died in the disaster, with children likely among those that could not be accounted for.
“This is a tragedy of major proportion and we have lost several people so far while others are still to be accounted for,” said Mr Shumba.
“The boat had enough life jackets and we suspect that women with children could have lost their children when disaster struck.”
He said search efforts would be suspended overnight owing to challenges with lighting.
The search and rescue mission is expected to continue this morning.
