1 dead, 23 missing after hippo capsizes canoe in Malawi

• Hippo capsizes a canoe in Malawi.
• More than 20 people were on the canoe when it happened.
• One person was killed and 23 are missing.

A TRUE TRAGEDY! What seemed to be a quiet moment traveling down a river turned into a nightmare for dozens of people when a hippo capsized their canoe and the current swept them away.

According to local media, rescuers have been searching for more than a day. A child was killed in this tragic event and 23 people are still missing. However, the authorities have mobilized to recover the victims.

Hippo capsizes canoe

A 1-year-old boy died and 23 people are missing and feared dead after a hippo rammed and capsized a canoe in a river in southern Malawi, authorities said Tuesday. Unfortunately, rescuers are not optimistic.

The long wooden boat was carrying 37 people across the Shire River on its way to neighboring Mozambique when it was struck by a hippo in Nsanje district on Monday.

Some people were rescued!

Malawi police rescued 13 people with the help of World Food Program staff working in the area who provided boats for the rescue operation, Nsanje District Police Commissioner Dominic Mwandira said.

According to The Associated Press, it was feared that everyone was dead because the search had lasted for more than 24 hours and they still hadn’t found anyone, said police spokeswoman Agnes Zalakoma.

Whose fault was it?

Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera sent Minister for Water and Sanitation Abida Mia to the scene. She said locals told her their hippos often caused trouble in the area and they wanted authorities to relocate some of the animals.

The boat was carrying more than 30 people up the Mtayamoyo River to the Mozambican side. The river is infested with crocodiles and hippos who often cause problems for travelers.

People were trying to get to work

Gladys Ganda, parliamentarian for Nsanje, stated on Facebook that the canoe was hit by a hippo, which caused it to capsize with more than 30 people on board.

«People were crossing the river to the Mozambican side, where they carry out agricultural activities,» she said. «Prayers are necessary that the missing are rescued,“ Ganda added after the incident, the third of its kind in the last three years.