Human consequences
More victims than the Titanic: one of the deadliest peacetime shipwrecks in history. Almost every family in Casamance is affected.
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TransportSinking of the Joola
1,863Deaths
Not quantifiedDisplaced / homeless
Not quantifiedEstimated cost
- 1,863 dead and missing according to the official toll, more than 2,000 according to victims’ families; only 65 survivors.
Designed for 536 passengers, the ferry linking Casamance to Dakar is carrying more than three times as many people when it capsizes within minutes, at night, in a storm off the Gambia.
Consequences
Environmental consequences
Overloaded and with only one working engine, the ship rolls over in the wind; the wreck has never been raised.
Economic consequences
The vital sea link between Ziguinchor and Dakar is cut for several years, further isolating Casamance.
Political consequences
The Senegalese government is dismissed. French families of victims file a complaint in France, where a judge targets senior Senegalese officials, causing diplomatic tension.
Further reading
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