A boat carrying 15 foreigners capsized in Kenya's Coast on Monday, August 9 killing seven.
Eight other foreigners, all Comorians, were rescued after the boat was overpowered by waves in the Indian Ocean.
Those who survived were rescued on Monday afternoon by fishermen who spotted their small engine boat tied with a white piece of cloth floating in the Indian Ocean.
According to reports, the boat's engine was not working. The fishermen alerted Kenya Navy soldiers who quickly intervened and managed to rescue the survivors who were rushed to the Watamu dispensary.
They were later transferred to the Malindi hospital where they are admitted. The survivors were dehydrated and they could barely speak when they were rescued.
Kenyans.co.ke also learned that the Comoro nationals had been stuck in the sea for more than 20 days. The survivors allegedly tossed the dead bodies in the ocean.
A Rwandese who was also part of the 15 people in the boat succumbed at sea, according to a statement by Kenya Coast Guard Services.
"The KCGS was able to establish contact with the Comorian Consulate and the Comorian Authorities who responded positively," the statement sent to Kenyans.co.ke reads.
"They were passengers moving from Mwali Island heading to Mayotte. Mwali is an autonomous island that forms part of the Union of Comoros. It is the smallest of the three major islands in the country," it continued.
The badly damaged boat was found by fishermen near Kilifi County with some of the survivors unconscious.
In June 2020, a boat with six occupants capsized in the Indian Ocean as the individuals tried to smuggle Miraa across the Somalia border.
A report by KNA detailed that the six were rescued by Kenya Wildlife Service and Kenya Coast Guard Services. Kenya Maritime Authority Lamu County Manager, Alex Mungai, and Lamu County Commissioner, Irungu Macharia, confirmed the incident.
“There is need for all concerned to deliberate on the placement of traffic control across that channel as well as enforcement patrols and fast rescue response mechanism for that particular area that is responsible for nine capsized boats in a span of one month," Mungai stated.
“Boat operators need to be wary about the sea during this June -July period in which the Indian Ocean is rough, and a lot of boats are likely to capsize," Macharia added.
