Mali state TV says 20 dead after boat accident near Timbuktu
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Mali's state television is reporting at least 20 dead after a boat capsized in the region of Timbuktu.
The accident took place Sunday, according to the report.
Souleymane Mahamane, who lives in the nearby village of Gourma-Rharous, says survivors reported that the boat was overladen and encountered high winds.
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Boating accidents are common in Mali during periods of high winds. Boats often carry more passengers and goods than is allowed. As a result, sometimes the true death toll is never known as not all passengers have tickets.
In 2013, 68 people died when a boat capsized near Konna in central Mali. That boat had been traveling from the town of Mopti to Timbuktu in the north when it sank on the Niger River.