At least eight die in shipwreck on Zambezi river

Maputo, 16 Apr (AIM) – At least eight people have died and six others are missing following a shipwreck that took place on Monday morning at Moto Island, on the Zambezi River, in Caia district, in the central Mozambican province of Sofala.

According to the Caia district administrator, Nobre dos Santos, cited in Tuesday’s issue of the independent newsheet “Carta de Moçambique”, the shipwreck occurred because the canoe, which was carrying the people, was overcrowded.

“Eight people lost their lives, six children and two adults”, dos Santos.

The canoe, he explained, was carrying a total of 12 people, mainly farmers, who wanted to visit their agricultural fields on Moto Island. To do so, they had to cross the Zambezi. The overloaded boat sank at about 06:00 on Monday.

“Four people are still missing and search operations are continuing”, said the administrator.

“We have a boat on site, technicians from the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD – the country’s relief agency) are there, the navy is there and the district services are there”, he added.

The accident in Caia comes a week after the tragedy in Nampula province, where a fishing boat carrying more than 130 people also sank, killing at least 98 people.

As a result of that accident, Mozambique’s Council of Ministers decreed three days of national mourning.

(AIM)

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