A hippopotamus capsized a boat in Ivory Coast, leaving 11 people missing, including women, children, and a baby.
Eleven people, among them women, children, and a baby, are missing after a hippopotamus overturned a boat in southwestern Ivory Coast, authorities said on Saturday.
The country’s minister for national cohesion and solidarity, Myss Belmonde Dogo, confirmed in a Facebook post that the narrow canoe-like vessel capsized Friday on the Sassandra River near Buyo. Three passengers were rescued, while search teams continue efforts to locate the missing.
Researchers in a 2022 study identified hippos as the leading cause of human-wildlife incidents resulting in deaths or injuries in Ivory Coast. Roughly 500 hippos live across southern rivers, primarily the Sassandra and Bandama.
Boat accidents are frequent in the region, often involving handmade longboats carrying excess passengers and goods. In April, a dozen children drowned when a boat capsized near Abidjan.
Hippos, weighing up to 7,000 pounds, are considered among Africa’s most dangerous animals, with global death estimates exceeding 500 annually.