At least 30 people have died and dozens remain missing after two motorised wooden boats collided on the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to local authorities.

The two boats collided on Sunday near Ngombe-Lukolela in Equateur province, according to provincial Interior Minister Crispin Mputu.

One vessel was travelling from Ubangi in the northwest towards Kinshasa, while the other was travelling from Kinshasa towards Lukolela, near the site of the collision.

The cause of the crash was not immediately established. Search and rescue operations were continuing to locate people who remain missing and to determine the full scale of the disaster.

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Death toll and rescue efforts

Mputu told The Associated Press that at least 30 people had died and that the victims had already been buried.

Dozens of others were reported missing as search operations continued. The final death toll could therefore rise as rescuers search the river and authorities establish how many people were aboard the two vessels.

Earlier local reporting had described the initial casualty figures as provisional, underlining that the situation was still developing.

Why the accident matters

The Congo River is a major transport route in the Democratic Republic of Congo, particularly for communities that depend on waterways to move between remote areas.

The latest collision has again raised concerns about river transport safety in the country. Local reports have previously highlighted risks associated with night-time navigation, overcrowding and inadequate safety measures, although the specific cause of this collision has yet to be established.

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Authorities are expected to establish the circumstances surrounding the collision, including the conditions under which both vessels were operating and the number of passengers on board. For now, officials have not attributed the crash to a specific cause. Search operations remain focused on finding survivors and recovering those still missing.

The accident comes against a wider backdrop of deadly boat accidents in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where river transport is essential for many communities.

The latest incident also highlights the difficulty of establishing casualty figures quickly when passenger manifests are incomplete or unavailable. A definitive assessment will depend on the continuing search operation and the authorities' investigation.