KARIBA, Aug. 12 (NewsDay Live) — Rescue teams on Wednesday morning retrieved 24 more bodies, including 14 adults and 11 children, near Long Island following Tuesday’s Mbuya Nehanda ferry disaster on Lake Kariba, Mashonaland West Provincial Affairs mimister, Mary Chombo.
“We have just received a call that another 24 people have just been retrived which means so far we have 37 confirmed dead,” she told a media briefing on Wednesday afternoon.
Chombo said she had requested that the accident be declared a national disaster.
"In the history of Kariba, we have never had a disaster of this magnitude,” Chombo said.
The bodies were taken to the mortuary in Kariba as rescue teams intensified the search for survivors and people still missing after the ferry capsized on Tuesday afternoon.
The latest recovery brings the number of bodies retrieved to 37, after 13 had been recovered by Tuesday evening, according to the Civil Protection Unit, which corrected an earlier figure of 15.
A total of 64 passengers had been rescued, with 57 housed at the newly activated Mahombekombe Primary School Trauma Centre and seven admitted to Kariba District Hospital. Three of those admitted had since been discharged by Wednesday morning.
Unusual showers fell over Kariba overnight, adding to the sombre mood as friends and relatives gathered at the hospital mortuary to identify their loved ones.
A member of the rescue team, who requested anonymity, said teams were combing waters around Long Island and nearby channels, supported by divers and local authorities familiar with the lake.
“We will not leave any area unchecked,” he said. “The search continues today until we account for everyone.”
The exact number of people aboard the ferry remains unclear, with authorities still working to reconcile conflicting passenger figures.
The Mbuya Nehanda ferry, operated by the Rural Infrastructure Development Agency (Rida), capsized near Long Island on Tuesday afternoon while travelling from Kariba to Chalala Fishing Camp.
Officials have urged the public to rely only on verified updates from the Zimbabwe Republic Police and government authorities as the search and recovery operation continues.