Two separate boat accidents in northwestern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) this week have left at least 193 people dead and dozens more missing, authorities and state media said Friday.

The tragedies occurred on Wednesday and Thursday, about 150 kilometers apart in Equateur province.

On Thursday evening, a whaleboat carrying nearly 500 passengers caught fire and capsized along the Congo River in Lukolela territory, killing 107 people, according to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs. At least 209 survivors were rescued near the village of Malange, while a memo from the Ministry of Social Affairs said 146 others were still missing.

A day earlier, another motorized boat capsized in Basankusu territory, claiming the lives of at least 86 people, most of them students, state media reported. Several others remain unaccounted for, though no official figure was given.

The cause of the accidents was not immediately clear. State media, citing reports from the scene, blamed Wednesday’s disaster on “improper loading and night navigation.” Photos from the area showed villagers mourning beside recovered bodies.

A local civil society group accused the government of negligence and claimed the toll was even higher.

Search operations were launched after the accidents, with naval personnel and community volunteers combing the riverbanks. Authorities pledged medical treatment for the injured, assistance to bereaved families, and the repatriation of survivors.

River transport remains a lifeline in the DRC’s vast rainforest regions, where wooden vessels serve as the primary mode of travel between remote villages. The boats are often poorly maintained, overloaded with passengers and goods, and travel without life jackets, making accidents frequent and deadly.

Night navigation adds further risk, often complicating rescue efforts and leaving many victims unaccounted for. Limited resources and the remoteness of accident sites also hamper search and recovery operations.

Source: AL Zazeera