A government-operated passenger ferry capsized on Zimbabwe's Lake Kariba during a violent storm this week, killing at least 44 people and leaving an unknown number still missing, authorities said Wednesday, as rescue teams raced against worsening weather to search the vast reservoir straddling the Zimbabwe-Zambia border.

The vessel went down Tuesday near Long Island, roughly 300 kilometers northeast of Harare, after departing that morning into rough water on Lake Kariba, one of the world's largest man-made lakes. Survivors say strong waves battered the boat and knocked out its engines before it rolled over. The death toll, initially reported at 15, climbed through Wednesday as more bodies were recovered; at least 77 people have been pulled from the water alive.

An Overloaded Boat

Investigators are focusing on how many people were actually aboard. The ferry's manifest listed 114 adult passengers and five crew against an official capacity of 90 — but a ticket collector told local media he counted as many as 153 people boarding, a number that doesn't include an unknown count of unticketed children traveling with their families, according to Al Jazeera. That gap is why officials say the final toll may not be known for days.

Survivor Maxton Kanhema described the chaos of the rescue to reporters: "When we were in the waters, then you could see a distress sign and then boats that were close by responded," he said, adding that "due to the bad weather, the responses were a bit late," according to a PBS NewsHour report.

"THE RESPONSES WERE A BIT LATE"

President Emmerson Mnangagwa declared a state of disaster to unlock national resources for the search, deploying the Zimbabwe Republic Police Sub-Aqua Unit, the Zimbabwe National Army's Boat Squadron, and a helicopter based out of Matusadona National Park. A specialized aquatic rescue unit was airlifted to the scene, according to Gulf News.

Lake Kariba is a critical transport link for remote communities along its 280-kilometer length, and ferries are a routine way to move between lakeside villages that have few road connections. Zimbabwean officials have not yet said whether the vessel's operator will face charges over the apparent overloading, though the disaster is already being described locally as one of the worst on the lake in decades.

Search-and-rescue crews continued combing the water Wednesday, hampered by the same unstable weather that sank the ferry in the first place. Officials say the death toll is likely to rise further as more bodies are recovered and the true number of passengers — including the uncounted children — comes into focus.