Crime & justice

Congo Boat Fire: Death Toll Rises to 148, Over 100 Missing

Published APR 19 2025

Story

Above: In the DR Congo, rivers serve as a primary means of transportation for its more than 100 million people. Image credit: Luis Tato/Contributor/AFP via Getty Images

The Facts

At least 148 people have been found dead and over 100 are missing after a wooden motorized boat caught fire and capsized on the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday, officials announced Friday.
Fox 59
guardian
The fire reportedly started when a person was cooking aboard the vessel HB Kongolo, which had departed from the port of Matankumu and was heading to Bolomba territory. This led passengers to jump overboard without knowing how to swim.
Dw.Com
New York Post
Rescue teams supported by the Red Cross and provincial authorities saved dozens of passengers. The boat reportedly carried approximately 500 passengers.
CNN
AA
Search and recovery efforts continued throughout the week, with rescue teams recovering 131 bodies on Wednesday and 12 bodies between Thursday and Friday, many of them severely charred.
Dw.Com
AA
About 150 survivors suffering from third-degree burns currently await humanitarian assistance in shelters at the Mbandaka town hall.
CNN
Fox 59
Al Jazeera
This disaster follows a pattern of deadly boat accidents in the region, including a December incident where 38 people died when a ferry carrying more than 400 Christmas travelers capsized, and an October accident on Lake Kivu that claimed 78 lives.
Al Jazeera
Reuters
Anadolu Ajansı

Sources Split

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The Spin

Narrative A

The Congo River system has become a death trap for citizens who have no choice but to rely on dangerous wooden vessels for transportation. Unfortunately, overcrowding and poor safety standards lead to repeated tragedies that could be prevented with proper maritime regulation enforcement.

Fox 59

Narrative B

The lack of reliable road and airway infrastructure across DR Congo's vast territory makes water transportation the only practical option for most citizens, forcing people to accept the risks associated with boat travel despite the known dangers.