Lake Victoria boat tragedy death toll could be 60 - as Ugandan Prince is rescued

A Lake Victoria boat cruise reportedly carrying 120 people to a party has capsized leaving multiple people dead.

Police have confirmed the death toll is currently 11 and around 70 others have been found alive – but another 39 are unaccounted for.

The Uganda Police Force Marine Unit is still searching for survivors and rescue efforts will continue into the night.

The boat had left Portbell, Luzira and was heading to Motola Beach.

Reports claim Prince David Wasajja, a brother to Buganda King Kabaka Ronald Mutebi, singer Iryn Namubiru and rapper The Mith were on the boat.

Mr Wasajja was reportedly rescued.

Someone who identified themselves as Iryn’s manager also said she was among those safe, according to local media.

A video reportedly of the revellers on board before it capsized shows them dancing and enjoying drinks while posing for the camera.

The tragedy comes months after more than 80 drowned after the MV Nyerere ferry overturned on Lake Victoria in September.

Stunned locals watched helplessly from the shore when the vessel got into difficulty just a few yards from the banks of Ukerewe, the lake’s biggest island.

Some nearby fisherman were able to save roughly 30 people from the water.

Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and the third largest, by area, in the world after Lake Superior and the Caspian Sea. It is approximately 26,590sq miles.

Accidents are not uncommon on Lake Victoria, which straddles Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya.

In 2012, at least 145 people died in a ferry disaster in the semi-autonomous archipelago of Zanzibar in the Indian Ocean, on a vessel that was overcrowded.

After the 2012 disaster, survivors told the BBC that they were not given any instructions on how to evacuate the sinking boat, and instead were merely told to remain calm.

The vessel, the MV Skagit, had been traveling from Dar es Salaam with 290 passengers on board.

In 1996, a ferry disaster on Lake Victoria in the same region killed at least 500 people.

We’ll be bringing you the very latest updates, pictures and video on this breaking news story.