The death toll from the RIDA-owned Mbuya Nehanda ferry disaster on Lake Kariba has risen to 97 after search and recovery teams recovered two more bodies on Thursday.

The latest victims, a woman and a young boy, were found drifting near Fothergill Island and towards King’s Camp, prompting an immediate multi-agency recovery operation.

The operation involved the Zimbabwe National Army, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) sub-aqua unit and Lake Kariba harbourmaster Lameck Chitenga.

The ZRP confirmed the latest recoveries on Thursday afternoon, saying the death toll had now reached 97.

“The ZRP reports that the Kariba RIDA Boat accident death toll is now 97 after the recovery of two bodies from the lake this afternoon,” the police said.

The recoveries came as salvage engineers began a delicate operation to right the capsized vessel, ahead of a comprehensive technical investigation into the disaster.

However, uncertainty remains over the final death toll. Mashonaland West provincial Local Government Services director Cecilia Chitiyo said a woman in her 20s, whose body was recovered on Tuesday, remains unidentified and does not match anyone on the list of passengers reported missing by relatives.

“With the recovery of two bodies today (yesterday), we have reached the estimated number of bodies we are looking for based on relatives who came forward reporting missing persons,” Chitiyo said.

“However, we have a body that was recovered on Tuesday of a woman in her 20s, which remains unclaimed. This means we still have one body missing from our list.”

Chitiyo said the death toll could therefore rise to 98 if the unidentified woman is confirmed to be an additional victim rather than someone already accounted for.

Search and recovery teams will continue working until the outstanding case is resolved and authorities establish whether any passengers remain unaccounted for, including those who may not have been formally reported missing.