A board of inquiry has begun investigating the capsizing of the passenger ferry Mbuya Nehanda on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe in an accident that left 97 people dead on August 11.
The three-member board chaired by Zimbabwe Supreme Court Justice Joseph Mafusire will conduct hearings in Kariba. The board is expected to complete its work within three months, with a possible one-month extension, and will report in writing to Transport Minister Felix Mhona.
The inquiry will examine the circumstances of the ferry's loading and operation, and its clearance to sail. Its remit will cover the vessel's registration, certification, seaworthiness and safety compliance; its passenger and cargo capacity; the number and competence of the crew; and the role of authorities overseeing inland water transport.
The board is also tasked with comparing the passenger manifest with the number of people who were actually on board and with assessing procedures that applied ahead of, throughout and following the voyage, including management of weather risks and security certification. It may also conduct site visits, summon witnesses, and hear evidence in public or virtually.
The number of people aboard has yet to be settled.
"To date, of the more than 160 persons who were on board, 67 survivors have been recorded and more than 95 persons have been recorded as deceased," Mhona said.
Shortly after the accident, Zimbabwe's Civil Protection Unit said records of tickets sold listed 114 adult passengers and five crew, and children not yet old enough to be ticketed may also have been aboard, though their number is unknown.
The vessel's stated capacity was 90 passengers and five crew.
"Given the gravity of the casualty, I found it appropriate and obligatory to establish the board of inquiry," the minister said.
"It is our respectful view that the preliminary findings so far are not adequate to bring closure to the ramifications of the casualty," he added, noting that an inquiry was in line with standards and recommended practices prescribed by the IMO.
Mhona said the findings would inform the development of inland waters shipping policy, legislation and operational frameworks, and would also offer closure to relatives of the deceased.
Amnesty International has called for "a prompt, effective, independent and impartial investigation" with its findings, evidence and recommendations made public.
Mbuya Nehanda was operated by the Kariba Rural Infrastructural Development Agency (RIDA).
The government announced formal inquest proceedings on August 19. Later that month, RIDA District Coordinator Ignatius Chiome was arrested and charged with culpable homicide in connection with the disaster. He had not entered a plea at the time of the charge.
Baird Maritime tracks global passenger vessel accidents in its comprehensive database, which can be accessed here.