At least seven health workers were killed after strong winds capsized their boat on Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania, according to the office of President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
The group was travelling across the lake to deliver medical services in the village of Kagunga, located near the border with Burundi, when the vessel overturned on Friday.
Authorities said 14 people were rescued and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment, while search teams continued looking for two people still missing.
The Kagunga area hosts thousands of Burundian refugees who have lived in Tanzania for years and are now gradually returning home as refugee camps are being closed. Health workers and humanitarian agencies have been providing services to support these communities.
In a separate incident on the same lake, a fisherman was killed and two others injured when their canoe was struck by lightning.
President Hassan expressed her “heartfelt condolences” to the victims’ families.
The tragedy comes as severe weather affects much of East Africa. Recent storms and heavy rains have caused deadly floods and landslides in Ethiopia and Kenya, killing dozens of people.
Source: TRT Afrika
