The search for missing passengers continues in Lake Kivu, located in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, after a vessel capsized.

According to a local governor, who spoke to Reuters, 78 bodies have been retrieved following the accident, which occurred on Thursday evening.

An amateur video, which Kondele News has not verified, has gone viral online, showing the vessel, overloaded with passengers, before it capsized.

The relatively calm waters of Lake Kivu and the unbalanced weight distribution on the vessel are believed to have contributed to the capsizing.

On the shore, relatives wept as victims were placed in body bags and carried away, while the search for more victims continued.

It remains unclear how many people are still missing, and regional officials have provided conflicting death tolls.

The governor of South Kivu Province reported that the death toll stands at 78, with 278 people having been on board the vessel.

“It’ll take at least three days to get the exact numbers because not all the bodies have been found yet,” Governor Jean Jacques Purisi told Reuters.

The boat capsized approximately 700 meters from port, and the causes of the accident are under investigation, he said in a statement.

At a local hospital, one survivor recounted the conditions during the incident.

“The conditions were calm when the crowded boat overturned. I saw people sinking, many went under. I saw women and children sinking in the water, and I myself was on the verge of drowning, but God helped me,” said 51-year-old Alfani Buroko Byamungu from his hospital bed.

As the search efforts continue, the community remains in mourning, hoping for the safe recovery of their loved ones.