20100906
africanews

Hundreds fear dead in DRC boat incidence Many people are feared dead in the Democratic Republic of Congo after two boats capsized in separate incidents. One of the boats was carrying up to 300 people when it caught fire on the Kasai River near the border with Angola. Officials are investigating why the boat was sailing at night without lights.

Equateur Province spokesperson Ebale Engumba said on Sunday the boat hit a rock early on Saturday in northwest DRC. She says 15 people survived among more than 100 estimated passengers.

Information Minister Lambert Mende Omalanga told that the BBC the vessel had been transporting fuel and was not supposed to be carrying any passengers.
In the other accident, at least 24 people died in the province of Equateur when a boat capsized on the Ruki River.

The boat had up to 100 people on board, Mende told the BBC.

A spokeswoman for Equateur's provincial government, Rebecca Ebala, said more than 70 people were believed dead. Fifteen survivors had so far been found, she added.

The DRC is a vast country of jungles and huge rivers in Central Africa with little more than 480km of paved road. Many people prefer to take boats even if they do not know how to swim.

The boats are often in poor repair and filled beyond capacity, and the industry is poorly regulated.