Authorities in Awerial County have issued an order regulating the amount of weight a commercial boat can carry from Mingkaman Port in Lakes state.
A boat of 250 tons capacity is allowed to carry only 500 passengers, while a boat of 150 tons can carry 300 passengers.
Those whose capacity are 40 tons can transport 120 passengers, and boats of 25 tons can carry 30 passengers.
The announcement was on Monday by Awerial County Executive Director, Peter Chol Chinduut.
He said this is to control overloading and prioritize safety of passengers.
“The boats regulating order aims at minimizing risks and falling off of people from the boat along the Nile,” Mr. Chol stated.
He warned that violators will be arraigned in court and fined.
In July, Mingkaman Boat Union also issued an order to promote the safety of travellers.
It revised the departure time at Mingkaman Port from 4:00 pm to 1:00 pm local time to stop late arrivals of passengers to their destinations. No boat is allowed to leave the port after 1pm.