Share & more
A vessel operated by the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) has rescued 150 people adrift in a convoy of two barges and a tug making the 200-km journey from Kinshasa to Mbandaka along the River Congo.
The convoy had gone adrift after the tugboat's engine broke down, and was in danger of being swept out of control by the current. The passengers, rescued on 7 November, were taken to the village of Kwamouth, some 2 km from the site of the incident.
The MONUC vessel was bond for Kisangani. It was the second time one of its boats had gone to the aid of a distressed convoy on this river, one of the largest on the continent. In August, it rescued 100 passengers stranded on a tugboat marooned on a sandbank on the river.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
