11 people feared dead after boat capsizes in Shire River

Eleven people, including children, are missing in Nsanje after a boat they were sailing in hit the river bank at Port-Shire and capsized Monday morning, according to a report by Malawi News Agency (Mana).

Nsanje Police Officer in Charge Kirby Kaunga , who confirmed the incident, said out of 15 people on the boat, four managed to swim to the shore and survived with minor injuries.

Kaunga said they met their fate while heading to their gardens in Mozambique. Many families in Nsanje cross the Shire River to garden in Mozambique because of shortage of land for cultivation in their areas.

He said boat capsized at around eight o’clock in the morning at Port-Shire in the district after it hit the river bank and lost balance.

“The canoe carried 15 including the operator. Four people survived and the rest are missing,” said the police officer.

A 16 year old young man of Thawalawa village in the area of Senior Chief Malemia who survived the accident said all his parents and relations who were traveling with him in the canoe are still missing.

“I was with my father, mother and my two siblings in the canoe. We were traveling to Mozambique to harvest our crops. I am the only survivor in [my family] the accident,” he explained.

Police and residents around the area are still searching for those missing.