At least 148 people were found dead in the Democratic Republic of Congo after a motorized wooden boat was fired and capable, said media, quoting local officials on Friday.

Officials said hundreds are still missing after the boat fired up and overturned on Tuesday in the Congo River, the reports added.

The ship carried as many as 500 passengers, including women and children, when it hijacked in the Congo River, located in the country’s northwestern region, according to the reports.

Sailing accidents are common in Congo, where old wooden vessels are the most important mode of transport between villages and often load far beyond capacity.

Officials estimate that hundreds of people remain missed, the reports added. The number of dead was previously estimated at 50.

The boat, called HB Kongolo, fired near the town of MBANDAKA, after leaving the Matankumu harbor to the Bolomba territory.

About 100 survivors were led to an improvised shelter at the local town hall, while they were led to local hospitals with combustion damage, Sky News reported.

The incident took place when a fire started when a woman cooked aboard the ship, Compétent Loyoko, the River Commissioner, told the Associated Press.

Several passengers, including women and children, died after jumping in the water without being able to swim, the report added.

By 2024, at least 78 people drowned when a boat bearing 278 passengers caped in the Kivu lake, the Eastern Congo. In a separate event, at least 22 people died after a riverboat sank in December in western Congo.