Lake Kivu: Canoe capsizes between Bukavu and Idjwi Island, twelve bodies recovered

At least twelve bodies have been recovered and dozens of people are missing following the sinking of a motorized wooden canoe on Lake Kivu, in the South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The vessel had departed from Bukavu during the night of September 26 to 27, 2026, heading toward the north of Idjwi Island, reports RFI. Fifteen people were rescued.

According to witnesses cited by the French radio station, more than fifty people were on board. Al Jazeera, which also reported on the tragedy on September 27, 2026, stated there were at least twelve dead and dozens missing. No final death toll has been established at this stage.

Traders returning from the market

The passengers were primarily small-scale traders from Idjwi Island who had just sold their goods in Bukavu and restocked before returning home. A wave reportedly destabilized the canoe, according to information reported by RFI.

This journey is a daily necessity: Idjwi Island, one of the most populous in Africa, is only connected to the mainland by the lake. For thousands of families, the canoe is not a choice but the only way to go to sell, buy, seek medical care, or study.

"Overloaded, poorly maintained vessels"

Local civil society is blaming navigation conditions that have been denounced for years. Hermando Zabona, a civil society actor cited by RFI, mentions "overloaded, poorly maintained vessels" lacking safety equipment, and describes these crossings as a daily danger.

The authorities, for their part, have called on shipowners to better manage the loading of vessels and have asked the General Directorate of Migration to strengthen security checks at the piers.

An insecurity that is not inevitable

Behind every shipwreck on Congolese lakes lies the same equation: missing life jackets, aging hulls, unenforced regulations, and passengers who have no other option. The safety of lake transport is less a matter of bad luck than of public policy—vessel registration, load limits, mandatory equipment, weather alerts—that local residents have been demanding for a long time. Search efforts were continuing to find the missing.