Zimbabwe Boat Capsizes Killing at Least 72 | Ratopati

Harare. At least 72 people have died when a boat capsized in Zimbabwe. Police said the boat, packed with passengers, capsized in Lake Kariba. Rescue workers have found the bodies of 26 more people, bringing the death toll to 72, police said.

It has been reported that the capsized boat was very old and was going from Kariba city to a rural area in the northwestern part of the country.

Officials have not said how many people were on the boat or how many are missing. However, it is estimated that about 153 people may have been on the boat, which has a capacity of 90 passengers. Zimbabwe’s disaster management agency said 77 people were rescued. 

Initially, officials said the number of children on the boat was unknown because children who needed to buy tickets were not included in the passenger list. However, the list of deceased released by the police shows that 16 of the deceased were 10 years old or younger.

Kariba is the world’s largest man-made lake. It is also the world’s largest lake by volume. This dam was built by damming the Zambezi River in the late 1950s and early 1960s. 

The lake, which is over 200 kilometers (124 miles) long, is up to 40 kilometers (25 miles) wide in places. This lake belongs to both Zimbabwe and Zambia. The border between the two countries runs through the middle of the lake.