[7] The ship's owners and operators, Tanzanian Electrical, Mechanical and Services Agency (TEMESA), reported that the ferry had a capacity of 100 passengers, 25 tonnes of cargo and three cars and made her maiden journey in 2004.

[4][12] Two survivors of the wreck, Ochori Burana and Ruben Mpande, said the man steering the vessel, who had been speaking on a mobile telephone, made a sharp turn after realising he was preparing to dock on the wrong side of the ship.

"[12] The President of Tanzania, John Magufuli, made an address in which he said that the man piloting the vessel was untrained and the real captain was not on board the ship.

[17] The next day, in the course of a press conference regarding the incident, President Magufuli announced a death toll of 131, with some forty individuals having been brought ashore to safety.

[6] The final numbers released by the government one week after the incident said "close to 270 passengers" were on board when the ferry capsized, of them 228 dead while 41 could be rescued.

Given the close proximity of the incident to the dock and the shallow waters around, a team of engineers from Mwanza together with the Tanzania People's Defence Force started a righting attempt to recover the ferry.

[22][16] Opposition politician John Mnyika accused the government of having failed to enhance ferry safety standards, and for the lackadaisical speed at which the "inadequate" rescue operation was conducted.

[23][24] A team of seven members under the supervision of the former Chief of Defense Forces, General George Waitara was formed a few days after the incident to probe reasons for the capsizing of the ferry.

With the closure of the bank account on 29 September 2018, close to US$400,000 were collected (TSh 900 million), around US$88,000 of that sum were used as condolence money for the relatives, around US$105,000 were used to pay the rescuers - and around US$210,000 were awarded to the Bwisya Health Centre on Ukara Island to build three hospital wards for women, men and children to help the residents in the area.