A heartbreaking disaster has struck the Democratic Republic of Congo, where a passenger-laden wooden boat carrying fuel went up in flames and capsized earlier this week, leaving a confirmed death toll of over 140 and many more feared missing. The incident occurred on Tuesday near Mbandaka, the capital city of Equateur Province, at the confluence of the Congo and Ruki rivers—a key artery for transportation in the country’s vast riverine landscape.
By Friday evening, authorities confirmed that at least 143 people had lost their lives in the inferno, with dozens still unaccounted for. Recovery efforts began almost immediately after the tragedy, and by Wednesday, rescue teams had already retrieved 131 bodies from the water. An additional 12 were discovered between Thursday and Friday, some of them charred beyond recognition, bringing the provisional death toll to 145.
The fatal fire reportedly erupted after a woman aboard the vessel lit a cooking fire close to the boat’s fuel storage area, triggering a devastating explosion. The flames rapidly consumed the wooden boat, which was said to be overloaded with hundreds of passengers. The intensity of the blaze and the quick spread of the fire left many trapped. While some managed to jump into the river to escape the flames, others drowned or were burned alive in the chaos.
Josephine-Pacifique Lokumu, a member of the Congolese national parliament, confirmed the scale of the tragedy on Saturday, revealing that the vessel was packed with far more passengers than it could safely carry. Civil society leader Joseph Lokondo, who was involved in organizing the burials, described the scene as horrific and expressed fears that the death toll could rise as more bodies are recovered.
Disturbing video clips that surfaced online show the boat engulfed in flames as smaller vessels hovered nearby, unable to offer meaningful help due to the sheer intensity of the fire. Survivors who managed to swim to safety have since been taken to local hospitals, though many are still being treated for severe burns and shock.
The exact number of passengers aboard remains uncertain due to a lack of manifest, but estimates suggest the figure was in the hundreds. Families continue to comb through hospital lists and morgues in a desperate search for missing loved ones.
Water transport remains the backbone of movement and trade in the DRC, particularly in regions with minimal road infrastructure. However, the sector has long been plagued by poor safety standards, overcrowding, and lack of regulatory enforcement. Accidents of this nature are, tragically, not uncommon.
In previous years, similar disasters have claimed countless lives. In 2023, dozens perished in a separate boat accident, while another catastrophe in 2019 on Lake Kivu left nearly 100 people dead. The latest incident once again highlights the urgent need for reforms in the country’s inland waterway safety protocols.
As the DRC mourns, questions are being raised about enforcement of safety regulations, the preparedness of emergency response systems, and the glaring infrastructural deficits that continue to cost innocent lives on the country’s waterways.
