Many people are feared drowned after a local boat returning from market-day trading in Nongowa, Guinea, capsized in a river early on Tuesday on the border with Kailahun District in eastern Sierra Leone.
The District Security Coordinator, Josephine Wuya Fatorma, told AYV that a woman and a girl had so far been confirmed dead, while several others remained unaccounted for.
She said 35 people had been rescued, with 31 currently in Nongowa and four receiving treatment in Koindu.
Rescue efforts were led by Guinean teams who deployed maritime resources including boats and divers, assisted by Sierra Leonean soldiers, police and the Red Cross.
The river forms part of the Yenga area, which is disputed between the two neighbouring countries and currently controlled by Guinea.
Madam Fatorma said a joint security meeting was planned for the following day, when the 31 people in Nongowa would be brought across and handed over to Sierra Leonean officials.
She noted that “several others” were still missing but could not give an exact figure, as those rescued were too traumatised to provide accurate details.
Additional reports from Guinean sources indicated the incident occurred around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, 15 September 2026, on the Makona River (also known as the Moa River) at the crossing linking Nongoa (Nongowa) in Guinea’s Guéckédou area to Sierra Leone. A motorised pirogue carrying mostly Sierra Leonean traders returning from the weekly market in Nongowa began taking on water in mid-river before capsizing. Local Guinean authorities put the number on board at about 43, with 41 rescued, a woman and a child of about one-and-a-half years confirmed dead, and one person still missing.
The mayor of Nongoa rural commune, Tamba Gabriel Bongono, said the wearing of life jackets by passengers helped limit the loss of life.
Search and recovery efforts continued, with exact circumstances of the capsizing still under investigation.
Cross-border market trade along this route remains common for communities in Kailahun and neighbouring areas of Guinea.
