Forty people have been rescued after a passenger vessel capsized off Mkondoni in Kilifi County due to strong winds and rough seas.
The Kenya Coast Guard Service (KCGS) said personnel from its Shimoni Station responded to a distress call and launched a search-and-rescue operation on Saturday, August 1, 2026.
The vessel, MV Siri Ya Mafanikio, had departed Shimoni at 8 am en route to Pemba, carrying 10 crew members and 30 passengers.
“All 40 persons on board (crew and passengers) were safely rescued by responding personnel,” KCGS said.
The wreckage was towed to Shimoni Port Zone for further investigations, with the Coast Guard saying the operation demonstrated its commitment to safeguarding lives and responding swiftly to maritime emergencies.
The rescue comes weeks after KCGS officers saved a man who jumped overboard from a ferry at the Likoni Channel in Mombasa.
Officers from the Kilindini Station, assisted by members of the public, pulled the man from the water and brought him ashore alive and in stable condition.
The agency said he was handed over to relevant authorities, while investigations continue to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The Likoni Channel, which links Mombasa Island to the South Coast, is one of Kenya’s busiest ferry crossings and requires rapid emergency response due to strong currents and heavy vessel traffic.