About 130 people are reported drowned or missing when a Nigerian boat capsizes along the coast Cameroon

Updated: 30 Sep 2019

A boat carrying over 150 people on its way to Gabon capsized on the Atlantic coast of Cameroon on 23 March 2005. 130 passengers are said to have drowned and only 23 survived. The boat had departed Oron, Nigeria on its way to Port Gentil , Gabon with passengers from Nigeria, Benin, Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali.

The boat is reported to have been made of wood, was extremely overloaded and is believed to have come apart at high seas. The passengers were on their way to Gabon to look for work.

How we know this

01BBC, (2006), Boat wrecked off Cameroon coast, from BBC NEWS, 23 March [online], Available at news.bbc.co.uk [Accessed: 20 March 2013]
02IRIN, CAMEROON: At least 30 West Africans drown after boat capsizes off coast, from Integrated Regional Information Networks, [online], Available at www.irinnews.org [Accessed: 20 March 2013]

Last updated · 30 Sep 2019

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2013, March 20). About 130 people are reported drowned or missing when a Nigerian boat capsizes along the coast Cameroon. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095314

South African History Online (2013) 'About 130 people are reported drowned or missing when a Nigerian boat capsizes along the coast Cameroon', South African History Online, 20 March. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095314 (Accessed: 14 October 2026).

South African History Online, About 130 people are reported drowned or missing when a Nigerian boat capsizes along the coast Cameroon [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095314, (accessed 14 October 2026).

"About 130 people are reported drowned or missing when a Nigerian boat capsizes along the coast Cameroon." South African History Online, 20 Mar. 2013, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095314. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

South African History Online. "About 130 people are reported drowned or missing when a Nigerian boat capsizes along the coast Cameroon." South African History Online. March 20, 2013. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095314.