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CNN Live Sunday
Over 1,000 Feared Dead Aboard Capsized Ferry in Senegal
Aired September 29, 2002 - 17:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: We turn now to Senegal, where authorities have updated the passenger list for the ferry that capsized Thursday. Officials now say more than 1,000 people were aboard, and most are feared dead. Only a few dozen are known to have survived. CNN's Charlayne Hunter-Gault joins us via videophone from Senegal with the details. Hi, Charlayne.
CHARLAYNE HUNTER-GAULT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi. Hello.
WHITFIELD: What is the latest there?
HUNTER-GAULT: Can you just repeat the question?
WHITFIELD: All right, Charlayne, what is the latest there in terms of the recovery efforts? Only a few dozen people are believed to have survived this ferry accident. What are the exact numbers that you are getting there on the ground?
HUNTER-GAULT: Well, the government has revised the figures to over 1,000. I think it's about 1,035. But of course, that number is sure to rise, because the rescuers have not began to penetrate the interior of the boat. There are a lot of people still trapped inside there, and of course, they've been there since late Thursday night, and so there's just no possibility that any of them will have survived.
What they're not sure about is how many people may have been picked up by the numerous fishing boats that were in those waters and came to the rescue as the boat sank. Some of those people may have been taken to places that have not reported in yet. So I suspect that those numbers are going to be constantly changing in the next few days, as they dig deeper into not only the boat but the entire tragedy.
WHITFIELD: And Charlayne, as we talk about that number, you're talking about the 1,035 people who were on board the ferry, and then we are seeing reports from between 64 to 104 people who have actually survived. Is it true, from your reporting there, that this ferry was one that was designed to hold only 500 people, and a ferry that was supposed only to traverse lakes, not the open seas?
HUNTER-GAULT: Well, of course, President Wade has acknowledged that the state is responsible. He has said -- you know, this ship is piloted by the military, by the navy. And he has accepted responsibility and offered compensation to the surviving -- survivors of the victims. And in his statement earlier, he did, in fact, say that the boat should not have been in an ocean. It's a lake-bound vessel, and that, in fact, it was overcrowded.
But he has also launched an official investigation, which promises to give the reasons why this boat capsized. And he said he will have that by Monday.
WHITFIELD: All right, Charlayne Hunter-Gault, thank you very much for reporting to us via videophone from Dakar, Senegal.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 29, 2002 - 17:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: We turn now to Senegal, where authorities have updated the passenger list for the ferry that capsized Thursday. Officials now say more than 1,000 people were aboard, and most are feared dead. Only a few dozen are known to have survived. CNN's Charlayne Hunter-Gault joins us via videophone from Senegal with the details. Hi, Charlayne.
CHARLAYNE HUNTER-GAULT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi. Hello.
WHITFIELD: What is the latest there?
HUNTER-GAULT: Can you just repeat the question?
WHITFIELD: All right, Charlayne, what is the latest there in terms of the recovery efforts? Only a few dozen people are believed to have survived this ferry accident. What are the exact numbers that you are getting there on the ground?
HUNTER-GAULT: Well, the government has revised the figures to over 1,000. I think it's about 1,035. But of course, that number is sure to rise, because the rescuers have not began to penetrate the interior of the boat. There are a lot of people still trapped inside there, and of course, they've been there since late Thursday night, and so there's just no possibility that any of them will have survived.
What they're not sure about is how many people may have been picked up by the numerous fishing boats that were in those waters and came to the rescue as the boat sank. Some of those people may have been taken to places that have not reported in yet. So I suspect that those numbers are going to be constantly changing in the next few days, as they dig deeper into not only the boat but the entire tragedy.
WHITFIELD: And Charlayne, as we talk about that number, you're talking about the 1,035 people who were on board the ferry, and then we are seeing reports from between 64 to 104 people who have actually survived. Is it true, from your reporting there, that this ferry was one that was designed to hold only 500 people, and a ferry that was supposed only to traverse lakes, not the open seas?
HUNTER-GAULT: Well, of course, President Wade has acknowledged that the state is responsible. He has said -- you know, this ship is piloted by the military, by the navy. And he has accepted responsibility and offered compensation to the surviving -- survivors of the victims. And in his statement earlier, he did, in fact, say that the boat should not have been in an ocean. It's a lake-bound vessel, and that, in fact, it was overcrowded.
But he has also launched an official investigation, which promises to give the reasons why this boat capsized. And he said he will have that by Monday.
WHITFIELD: All right, Charlayne Hunter-Gault, thank you very much for reporting to us via videophone from Dakar, Senegal.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
